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THE 


COMPLETE 

CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER 


A  00NCI8E  COMPENDIUM  OF  THE  ART  OB"  PAINTING 

CARRIAGES,  WAGONS  AND   SLEIGHS, 

EMBRACING    FULL    DIRECTIONS     IN    ALL     THE    VARIOUS 
BRANCHES,  INCLUDING 

Lettering,  Scrolling,  Ornamenting,   Striping, 
Varnishing  aM  Coloring, 

WITH  NUMEROUS  RECIPES  FOR  MIXING  COLOftg. 


ILLUSTRATED. 


BY    FRITZ    SCHRIBER. 


NEW    YORK: 
M.  T,  RICHARDSON  CO.,  Publishers. 


Copyrighted  by 

M.  T.  RICHARDSON. 

1883. 


LIBRARY 


Shribenaca< 


PREFACE. 


In  placing  the  manuscript  of  this  book  in  the  hands  of 
the  publisher,  I  was  impressed  with  the  belief  that  I  had 
thoroughly  carried  out  the  original  design,  which  was  to 
write  a  full  and  comprehensive  treatise  on  tne  methods 
employed  by  experienced  workmen  in  painting  a  carriage, 
wagon,  sleigh  or  railway  car,  and  since  the  work  of  my 
pen  has  returned  to  me  in  printed  form,  I  see  no  cause  to 
change  that  belief  or  to  erase  one  word  therein. 

The  painting  of  vehicles,  although  differing  in  many 
respects,  according  to  their  quality  or  value,  is  virtually 
the  same,  and  I  have  departed  from  the  beaten  track  of 
writers  in  magazines,  and  chosen  for  my  text  a  wagon, 
from  the  fact  that  the  field  was  a  larger  one,  and  in  de- 
scribing how  that  vehicle  could  be  painted,  lettered, 
striped  and  ornamented,  I  could  at  the  same  time  give  all 
the  information  necessary  for  the  painting  of  a  first-clasa 
carriage  or  sleigh.  My  object,  too,  was  to  condense  in  one 
handbook  not  only  the  method  of  executing  plain  painting 
on  vehicles,  but  to  give  all  the  instruction  necessary  for  the 
practice  of  striping,  lettering,  scrolling,  varnishing,  polish- 
ing and  many  minor  accomplishments,  which  would  be 
out  of  place  in  a  work  on  carriage  painting  alone. 

Toe  Authok. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
Preface, 5 

CHAPTER  I. 

THE   SHOP  AND  HOW  IT  SHOULD  B3  CONSTRUCTED. 

The  Furniture  of  the  Paint  and  Varnish  Rooms, 
Brushes,  etc.— To  "Bridle"  a  Brush— The  Sash 
Tool— The  Camels'  Hair  Brush,  or  "Blender"— The 
Badger  Hair  Brush — The  Oval  Brush — Cleaning-up 
Brush — Bench  and  Boxes  for  Colors — List  of  Colors 
Required  in  Wagon  Painting, 11 

CHAPTER  II. 
MIXING  COLORS. 
Combining     Pigments    to      Form    Colors — Glazing — 
Putty,  White,  Quick,  Black,  etc.,     -        ...    19 

CHAPTER  III. 

PRIMING. 

Lead  Color  Method — The  First  Coat  of  Lead — Rough 
Stuffing  the  Panels — Leading  the  Gears — Rubbing 
Out  Rough  Stuff — Putting  Final  Foundation  Coat 
on  the  Gears — Painting  the  Body — The  Second 
Coat  on  the  Body — Painting  the  Gears — The  Rub- 
bing Process,      --------28 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  PUTTY-KNIFE  METHOD. 

Another  Way — The  Wood- filling  Method — Varnishing 
— Varnishing  of  Wagons  and  Sleighs — Sweating — 
Cleaning  new  Brushes,     ------    38 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 
The    Care    of    Materials — Failures    in    Varnishing — 
Troubles  of  the  Painter — Specky  Varnishes — Crawl- 
ing of  Paint  or  Varnish — Blistering — Cracking  of 
Paint  and  Varnish — To  Paint  Canvas-top  Sides — 
Glazing  with  Carmine,      ------    45 

CHAPTER  VI. 
"Wagon  Striping — The  Striper's  Kit  of  Tools— Striping 
Pencils — Zinc  Palettes— Care  of    Pencils— Pencils 
for  Ornamental  Striping — Colors  for  Striping,        -    50 
CHAPTER  VII. 
Wagon  Striping — Breaking  Lines — A  Pounce  Bag — 
Gold  Striping — Gilding  Size — Applying  Gold  Leaf 
— Gold  Striping,        -------56 

CHAPTER  VHI. 

Colors  Employed  on  Wagons — Painting  a  White  Job  -    68 

CHAPTER   IX. 

WAGON  LETTERING. 

The  Full  Block,  round  and  octagon — Half  Block,  round 
and  octagon — Solid    Block    and  Italic   Letters — 
Outline  Letters — Printers'  Black  Letter  or  German 
Text— Ornamental  and  Tuscan  Full  Block  Letters 
— Three    Styles  of  Letters  used    by    the    Abbot 
Downing  Co.,    --------70 

CHAPTER  X. 

WAGON    LETTERING    CONTINUED. 

The  Roman  Letter— The  Modern  Old  Style  Letter— The 
New  York  Roman  Letter — The  New  York  Roman 
Italic  Letter  (Upper  and  Lower  Case) — The  Boston 

Roman, 80 

CHAPTER  XI. 

LAYING  OUT  WORK. 

Designing  naif  Block  Letters — Using  the  Ellipse  in 
Making  Round  Letters — The  Alphabet  in  Gothic 
— Half  Block  Lower  Case  Letters — Making  an 
Ellipse— Properly  Balancing  Letters  and  Figures,-    96 


CONTENTS.  9 

CHAPTER  XII. 

SHADING. 

Single  Shade  Block  Letters— Double  Shade  Blocked 
Letters — Shading  Gold  Letters — Shading  Painted 
Letters — Tools  used  in  Lettering — Illustrations  of 
Various  Methods  of   Shading,       -  104 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

WAGON  SCROLLING. 

Making  Circles  and  Curves — Making  and  Shading 
Scrolls — Materials  and  Tools  used  in  Making  and 
Shading  Scrolls— Designing  and  Laying  Out  Scroll 
Patterns— Flat  Scrolls, Ill 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

STENCILING. 

Making  a  Stencil — Brushes  for  Stencils,        ...  121 

SUPPLEMENT— CARKIA&E  PAINTING  AND  VARNISHING. 
CHAPTER  I. 

A  GOOD  FOUNDATION. 

Putting  on  the  First  Coat — Chipping — The  Second  Coat 
— Puttying — Sand  Papering — The  Last  Coat — 
Ready  for  Ground  Color — Drying  Dead — The  Var- 
nish Coats — The  Finishing  Coat — Rubbing,  -       -  127 

CHAPTER  II. 
Dusting  and  Cleaning  Work — Puttying   up    Joints — 
Cleaning  Gears,        ------        .  137 

CHAPTER  III. 
Painting  Lumber  Wagons — Striping — A  Good  Color — 
Ready  to  Varnish,        ------  142 

CHAPTER  rv. 
Touching  Up  Repair  Work, 145 


10  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 
How  to  Paint  a  Cheap  Job— Painting  an  Express  Wa- 
gon— The  Gear  Coat — Paint  for  Body— Painting 

the  Body, 148 

CHAPTER  VI. 
How  to  Revarnish  a  Carriage — Washing — Touching 

Up, 152 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Forms  and  Colors  in  the  Painting  of  Vehicles — One 
Color  for  Wood  and  Another  for  Iron — Another 
View — All  Parts  should  be  of  the  Same  Color — 
The  Harmony  of  Analogy — The  Harmony  of  Con- 
trasts,       -------        -        -  155 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Transfer  Ornaments — How  Made,   -----  162 
Monograms — Florentine —  Modern  —  Louis    XV.  — En- 
glish,       -  166 

Index, 171 


THE 

COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  J^ND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


CHAPTER  I. 


THE  SHOP  AND  HOW  IT  SHOULD  BE  CONSTRUCTED. 

Wagon  painting,    though  in  some  respects  inferior  to 
coach  painting,  is  no  less  an  art,  and  he  who  would  acquire 
it  must  give  heed  to  the  most  minute  details,  for  therein 
lies  his  success  in  finish,  and  finish  is  the  principal  point  in 
selling  the  job  or  in  making  a  reputation  and  an  extensive 
business.     I  do  not  believe  it  worth  the  time  to  enter  into 
a  long  explanation  of  what  the  paint  shop  should  be,  for 
t  is  to  be  supposed  that  my  readers  already  have  their 
shops  built  and  in  use  ;  but  it  will  not  be  amiss  to  note  a 
few  of  the  important  features  which  should  be  and  can  be 
made  in  any  shop.  Wagon  paint  shops  should  be  roomy,  not 
cut  up  into  small  rooms,  but  large  and  with  high  ceilings. 
A  large  room  in  which  to  do  the  general  work  and  a  smaller 
room  for  varnishing  is  all  that  is  necessary.     The  var- 
nish room,  being  almost  a  sacred  place,  should  be  provided 
with  smooth  walls  and  ceiling  either  of  wood  or  plaster, 
plenty  of  light,  a  water-tight  floor,   andr  of  most  impor- 
tance, a  ventilator  in  centre  of  ceiling,  running  through 
the  roof  to  the  outer  air.     This  feature  of  a  room  where 
varnishing  is  done  is  one  not  fully  appreciated  by  the 


12        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON'  PAINTER. 

general  class  of  carriage  and  wagon  builders.  There  are 
many,  however,  who  have  adopted  it,  and,  once  knowing 
its  value,  would  not  be  without  it.  The  expense  of  a  ven- 
tilator is  trifling,  and  any  tinsmith  can  make  one.  It 
consists  of  a  pipe  of  sheet  iron,  say  fifteen  inches  in  dia- 
meter, having  upon  its  outer  end — which  is  run  up  two 
feet  from  the  roof — a  revolving  cap  or  grating,  which, 
turned  by  the  wind,  creates  a  draught,  and  that  sucks  up 
the  dust  of  the  room,  and  allows  the  escape  of  air,  deprived 
of  its  oxygen,  whereby  the  varnish  has  an  opportunity  to 
harden  better. 

Varnish  dries  not  so  much  by  the  evaporation  of  its 
parts  as  it  does  by  absorbing  oxygen  from  the  atmosphere 
and  oxidizing,  the  oil  becoming  a  sort  of  resin,  and  where 
a  goodly  supply  of  fresh  air  is  admitted  the  quicker  and 
harder  the  varnish  becomes.  Windows  should  be  provided 
with  thick  curtains — enameled  cloth  will  be  found  excel- 
ent— to  enable  one  to  darken  the  room  when  the  work  of 
the  day  is  complete,  to  prevent  flies  from  getting  upon  the 
work.  With  these  features  added  to  the  ready-made  paint 
shop,  the  painter  will  be  prepared  to  do  his  varnishing  with 
no  fear  of  many  of  the  troubles  which  beset  the  varnisher, 
such  as  "enameling,"  "pitting,''  "crawling,"  etc. 

THE  FURNITURE  OF  THE  PAINT  AND  VARNISH  ROOMS, 
BRUSHES,  ETC. 

The  conveniences  of  the  paint  and  varnish  rooms,  which 
include  trestles,  benches,  jacks,  etc.,  next  demand  atten- 
tion, for  those  tend  to  hasten  the  work,  as  well  as  give 
comfort  to  the  workman.  The  coach  painter  requires 
wheeled  trucks  on  which  to  move  his  coach  body  from 
place  to  place,  but  this  is  not  generally  considered  neces- 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE    AND  WAGON   PAINTER.        13 

sary  in  the  wagon  shop,  a  body  being  set  up  on  benches, 
and  allowed  to  remain  so  during  the  painting,  then  lifted 
and  carried  to  the  varnish  room  for  finishing.  Trestles  are 
used  for  light  bodies,  or  for  resting  platform  gears  upon. 
Benches  for  placing  paint  or  varnish  cups  upon  wben  at 
work  and  low  stools  or  boxes  are  necessary  for  use  while 
striping  or  lettering.  The  conventional  stone  and  muller, 
and  perhaps  a  paint  mill,  need  not  be  dilated  upon,  but 
the  brushes  deserve  special  mention.  Illustrations  are  pre- 
sented of  those  best  suited  to  the  wants  of  the  wagon 
painter.  The  first  to  demand  attention  is  the  round  paint 
brush,  Fig.  1,  which  is  best  adapted  for  laying  priming 
or  rough  stuff  on  bodies.  The  size  is  that  known  as  0000 
(four  naughts). 


Fig.  1. — A  Round  Paint  Brush. 

TO    "  BRIDLE  "  A  BRUSH. 

As  the  bristles  are  too  long  when  first  purchased ,  the  brush 
must  be  "  bridled,"  that  is,  have  an  extra  binding  added. 
This  may  be  done  in  several  ways  :  1.  By  winding  a  strong 
cord  around  the  bristles  up  to  about  the  middle  of  the  same, 
or  as  far  from  the  original  binding  as  desired.  2.  By 
covering  one-half  the  length  of  tbe  bristles  with  leather 
stitched  on  tightly.  3.  By  wrapping  a  piece  of  muslin  or 
enameled  cloth  around  the  bristles,   then  tying  a  strong 


14        THE"  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  -WAGON  PAINTER. 

cord  around  as  high  as  the  extra  binding  should  come,  turn- 
ing back  the  rnuslin  toward  the  handle,  and  fastening  by 
tacking  to  the  original  binding.  4.  There  are  several 
patent  binders  or  bridles  made  of  metal  in  market,  and  one 
has  an  opportunity  to  choose  from  these  whichever  he  ap- 
proves. "When  the  bristles  are  worn  down  the  bridle 
may  be  removed, and  a  new  brush  is  again  in    hand. 

THE  SASH  TOOL. 
The  companion  of  the  round  brush  is  the  sash  tool,  Fig.  2, 
which  is  used  to   "clean  up"  around  moldings  and  for 


Fig.  2.— Sash  Tool 
painting  small  panels.  The  illustration  is  so  perfect  that 
I  refrain  from  further  remark,  save  to  say  that  the  No.  8 
tool  is  about  the  proper  size  to  purchase.  These  brushes 
may  be  used  for  painting  gears,  although  we  prefer  aflat 
bristle  brush  on  such  work. 

THE  CAMEL'S  HAIR  BRUSH,  OR  "BLENDER." 

For  laying  colors  no  better  tool  can  be  found  than  the 
camel's  hair  brush,  or  "  blender,"  as  some  call  them,    Fig.  3. 


Fig.  3. — Camel' s  Hair  Brush. 
I    illustrate  the  proper  kind  of    such  a  tool    and  it  will 
be  noticed  that  the  hairs  are  fastened  not  only  by  cement, 


THE   COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


15 


but  by  riveting  through  the  binding,  while  those  brushes 
not  riveted,    shown  in  Fig.  4,  are  entirely  unfit  for  any 


Fig.  4. — A   Very  Poor  Brush. 

purpose  in  the  paint  shop,  and  should  never  be  purchased. 

THE  BADGER  HAIR  BRUSH. 

For  laying  color  and  varnish  coats  the  Badger  hair  brush 
Fig.  5,  is  considered  best  for  small  panels  or  any  delicate 
work.     It  is  also  used  for  laying  varnish. 


Fig.   5. — Badger  Hair  Flowing  Brush. 
The  fitch  hair  brush  is  now  almost  obsolete,  owing  to 
the  many  imitations  which  prove  worthless. 

THE  OVAL  BRUSH. 

For  varnishing  the  large  panels  of  a  body  or  for  gears  the 
oval  brush,  Fig.  6,  is  best  as  it  will  carry  a  good  supply  of 
varnish.  These  are  made  of  French  white  bristles  entirely, 
and  with  care  will  last  a  long  time.  A  partly  worn  brush 
always  has  the  preference  over  a  new  one,  but  the  brush- 


16        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WaGON  PAINTER. 

maker  now  forms  the  end  as  if  partly  worn,  which  gives  it 
the  desired  shape  and  softness. 


Fig.  6. — Oval   Varnish  Brush,  Chiseled. 


CLEANING-UP  BRUSH. 


A  flattened  round  tool,  Fig.   7,  is  used  to  "clean  up" 
around  moldings,  between  the  spokes,  etc.     Care  shoxild 


Fig.  7.— Flattened  Round  Tool,   Chiseled. 

be  taken  to  select  brushes  having  the  bristles  or  hair  set 
in  glue,  which  is  insoluble  in  varnish.  Such  brushes 
are  far  superior  to  those  having  the  bristles  fastened 
with  cement. 

With  those  mentioned  and  a  reasonable  supply  of  flat 
bristle  brushes  the  shop  will  be  well  stocked  in  the  brush 
line,  and  we  will  next  look  to  the  pigments  or  colors  to  be 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        17 

employed,  leaving  striping  and  ornamental  pencils  for  our 
chapter  on  such  work. 

BENCH  AND  BOXES  FOR  COLORS. 

Having  a  substantial  paint-bench  on  which  to  place  the 
"stone"  or  "  flag"  and  "  muller,"  and  upon  the  end  of 
which  a  paint  mill  is  secured,  we  place  above  it — to  be 
handy — a  few  shelves,  and  on  these  are  boxes — cigar  boxes 
will  answer — with  covers  to  exclude  dust,  in  which  the  dry 
pigments  are  kept.  Upon  the  front  of  each  box  the  name 
of  the  color  contained  therein  is  painted,  and  the  follow- 
ing list  comprises  all  that  is  required  in  a  wagon  paint 
shop: 

LIST  OF  COLORS  REQUIRED  IN    WAGON  PAINTING. 


White  lead  in  oil, 
the  best  quality  ; 
none  other  is  fit  to 
use. 

Ultramarine  blue. 

Dutch  pink. 

Dry  white  lead. 

Munich  lake. 


Chrome  yellow. 
Lemon  chrome. 
Oiange  chrome. 
Yellow  ochre. 
Raw  sienna. 
Milori  green,   L. 

and  D. 
Chrome  green. 
Yellow  lake. 
Whiting. 
Lamp  black. 


M. 


Burnt  sienna. 
Raw  umber. 
Burnt  umber. 
Indian  red. 
Venetian  red. 
Prussian  blue. 
Ivory  black. 
Carmine,  No.  40. 
Vermilion,    English, 

L. and  D. 
American  vermilion . 


and  perhaps  several  others,  but  as  these  would  form  a  good 
beginning,  we  start  from  here  to  mix  colors,  making  men- 
tion, first,  that  the  vehicles  used  are  turpentine,  brown 
japan,  raw  linseed  oil  (boiled  oil  is  unfit  for  wagon  or 
carriage  work),  and  the  regular  list  of  varnishes,  i.e.,  rub- 
bing and  finishing.  Prepared  paints  are  perhaps  to  some  a 
blessing,  but  he  who  would  use  economy  in  his  work  must 
surely  mix  and  grind  his  own  colors.     Ready-mixed  colois 


18        THE   COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON   PAINTER. 

are  too  expensive  for  the  wagon  painter,  as,  for  example, 
in  purchasing  French  carmine  at  $10  per  lb.  he  pays  at 
the  rate  of  $10  per  lb.  for  the  japan  in  which  the  pig- 
ment is  ground,  for  the  average  mixture  is  one  pound  of 
dry  color  and  one  pound  of  japan  or  varnish.  Ultramarine 
blue  (dry)  can  be  bought  for  25  cents  per  pound,  the 
japan  necessary  to  make  a  pound  of  dry  color  into  paint 
is  worth,  say  25  cents,  but  the  price  of  a  pound  of  ready- 
prepared  ultramarine  blue  is  $1.  You  can  make  tico 
pounds  of  paint  for  50  cents. 


CHAPTER  II. 


MIXING  COLORS. 

The  simplest  mixtures  or  combination  of  ingredients  are 
to  some  the  most  difficult,  and  we  will  first  attend  to  these. 
Most  colors  may  be  mixed  with  japan  and  turpentine,  add- 
ing a  very  little  linseed  oil  (raw)  to  give  elasticity,  and  to 
Know  exactly  what  quantity  of  liquids  to  use,  jou  may 
follow  these  directions : 

Lay  out  on  the  stone  a  small  quantity  of  dry  pigment 
and  wet  it  to  a  mush-like  consistency  with  brown  japan  ; 
work  it  well  over  with  the  pallette  knife  and  then  put  it 
in  the  mill  to  grind.  Add  to  the  mass  in  the  mill  just 
enough  turpentine  to  liquify  it,  or  make  the  stiff  mas3  a 
medium  thick  liquid,  so  that  it  will  grind  out  nicely — if 
too  thin  the  paint  will  not  readily  run  through  a  tight 
mill,  and  the  mill  should  be  tightened  as  tight  as  it  is  pos- 
sible to  turn  it. 

When  the  paint  is  ground  out,  add  one  tablespoonful  of 
raw  linseed  oil  to  a  pint  of  paint,  stir  it  well,  then  test  its 
drying  quality  by  spreading  a  little  upon  the  thumb  nail. 
Blow  the  breath  upon  it  to  hasten  drying,  and  in  a  few 
seconds  it  will  have  the  same  appearance  it  would  have 
when  dry  upon  the  work.  If  it  appear  "  dead  "  or  "  flat," 
add  a  little  more  oil  :  if  glossy  add  a  little  turpentine,  and 
so  temper  it  until  it  appears  to  dry  upon  the  nail  with  an 
egg-shell  gloss,  that  is,  not  too  dead,  nor  yet  glossy. 

The  reason  why  definite  amounts  of  japan,  oil  or  turpen. 
tine  cannot  be  stated  is  owing  to  the  difference  in  pigments 


20        THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

as  for  example,  umber  is  a  natural  dryer  and  it  will  neu- 
tralize oil  to  such  an  extent  that  more  oil  may  be  used 
than  in  most  any  other  paint. 

Lampblack  is  of  a  greasy  or  anti-drying  nature,  and 
consequently  requires  less  oil  to  form  an  egg-shell  glos~. 
This  plan  of  mixing  may  be  safely  carried  on  with  most 
pigments. 

Vermilion,  however,  is  best  mixed  with  a  quick  rubbing 
varnish  in  the  place  of  japan  and  no  oil  whatever  should 
be  added  to  vermilion  paint,  as  it  tends  to  darken  it.  The 
quicker  you  can  get  vermilion  to  dry,  the  better  it  will 
hold  its  color. 

Yellow  lake  and  Dutch  pink  are  generally  used  as 
glazing  colors  over  green  or  yellow  grounds  and  therefore 
should  be  mixed  in  varnish  instead  of  oil  and  japan. 

It  is  quite  in  keeping  with  our  design  to  call  particular 
attention  to  the  use  of  oil.  The  house-painter  places  his  de- 
pendence on  oil  either  raw  or  boiled,  or  both,  but  the  wagon 
or  carriage  painter  would  make  sorry  work  if  he  followed 
the  house-painter  in  his  ideas  of  durability  etc. : — Boiled 
oil  may  answer  the  house-painter's  purpose,  but  it  finds  no 
friend  in  the  wagon  shop.  Japan  too,  requires  looking 
after;  to  test  it,  pour  a  little  on  a  shallow  dish  and  add  a 
similar  quantity  of  raw  linseed  oil ;  if  the  two  amalgamate, 
the  japan  may  be  favorably  received,  but  if  the  mixture 
curdles  or  becomes  thick  and  livery,  drop  the  japan  as 
you  would  a  hot  iron. 

COMBINING    PIGMENTS   TO   FORM   COLORS. 

Having  explained  the  manner  of  mixing  paint,  let  us 
now  look  at  the  combination  of  pigments  to  form  certain 
colors.     The  exact  proportions  of  ingredients  cannot  be 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         21 

correctly  stated,  for  some  pigments  vary  greatly  in  their 
strength  or  covering  power,  and  again,  a  shade  of  color  as 
described,  might  not  suit  the  eye  of  all,  therefore,  we 
simply  tell  what  pigments  to  use  in  making  a  color,  leaving 
it  for  the  painter  to  change  the  proportions  to  suit  his  case. 
In  making  tints  white-lead  forms  the  base  and  the  colors 
must  be  added  with  care,  as  some  pigments  are  very  strong 
and  a  drop  will  entirely  change  the  tint,  while  others  will 
hardly  be  perceptible.     To  make 

1.  LEAD  COLOR— Take  8  parts  white,  1  of  blue  and  1 
of  black. 

2.  MEDIUM    GRAY— 8    parts    white    and  2  of    black 
(lampblack). 

3.  FRENCH  GRAY— White  tinted  with  ivory  black. 

4.  LIGHT  BUFF— White  and  yellow  ochre. 

5.  DEEP    BUFF— The  same  with  a  little  Indian  red 
added. 

6.  GOLD  COLOR — White  and    orange   chrome,   tinted 
with  red  and  blue. 

7.  PEARL  COLOR— White,  black  and  red,  or  white,  blue 
and  red. 

8.  CANARY  COLOR— White  and  lemon  yellow. 

9.  OAK  COLOR — White  and  yellow  ochre  or  raw  sienna. 

10.  OLIVE  COLOR— Yellow,  blue,  black  and  vermilion. 

11.  SNUFF  COLOR— Yellow    and    vandyke  brown  or 
burnt  umber. 

12.  ROSE  COLOR— White  and  carmine. 

13.  BOTTLE  GREEN— Dutch  pink  and  Prussian  blue 
for  ground,  glaze  with  yellow  lake. 

14.  SALMON  COLOR— 5  parts  white,  1  yellow,  1  umber, 
and  1  red. 


22       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

15.  BROWN— 3  parts  red,  2  black  and  1  yellow. 

16.  COPPER  COLOR— 1  part  red,  2  yellow  and  1  black. 

17.  LEMON  COLOR— 5  parts  white  and  2  lemon  yellow. 

18.  STRAW  COLOR— Same,  with  a  drop  or  two  of  ver- 
milion. 

19.  FAWN  COLOR— 8  parts  white,  1  red,  2  yellow  and  1 
*  burnt  umber. 

20.  FLESH    COLOR— 8    parts   white,  3    vermilion,    3 
chrome  yellow. 

21.  CHESTNUT  COLOR— 2  parts  red,  2  chrome  yellow, 
1  black. 

22.  WINE  COLOR— 2  parts  ultramarine  blue,  3  carmine. 

23.  MAROON  YELLOW— 3  parts  carmine,  2  yellow. 

24.  TAN    COLOR- 5    parts  burnt  sienna,    2  yellow,    1 
raw  umber. 

25.  PEA  GREEN— 5  parts  white  and  1  chrome  green. 

26.  CITRON  COLOR— 3  parts  red,  2  yellow  and  1  blue. 

27.  STONE    COLOR— 5  parts  white,  2    yellow   and   1 
burnt  umber. 

28.  DRAB  COLOR— 9  parts  white  and  1  burnt  umber. 

29.  LILAC  COLOR— 4  parts  red,  3  white  and  1  blue. 

30.  PURPLE  COLOR-Same,  with  more  blue. 

31.  VIOLET  COLOR— Same,  with  more  red. 

32.  LONDON  SMOKE— 2  parts  umber,  1  white  and  1  red. 

33.  CREAM  COLOR— 5  parts  white,  2  yellow  and  1  red. 

34.  CLARET  COLOR— Red  and  black  or  carmine  and 
blue. 

85.  DOVE  COLOR— Red,  white,  blue  and  yellow. 
30.  LIGHT  GRAY— 9  parts  white,  1  blue  and  1  black. 
37.  WILLOW  GREEN— 5   parts  white  and  1  verdigris 
(tube  color). 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WACON  PAINTER.        23 

38.  PEACH  BLOSSOM— 8  parts  white,  1  blue,  1  red  and 
1  yellow. 

89.  BRONZE  GREEN— 5  parts  chrome  green,  1  black 
and  1  umber. 

40.  CARNATION  RED— Carmine  and  white,  or  Munich 
lake  and  white. 

41.  GRASS  GREEN— 3  parts  yellow  and  1  Prussian  blue. 

42.  BRICK  COLOR— 2  parts  yellow  ochre,  1  red  and  1 
white. 

43.  PORTLAND  STONE— 3  parts  raw  umber,  3  yellow 
ochre  and  1  white. 

44.  PLUM  COLOR— 2  parts  white,  1  blue  and  1  red. 

45.  FRENCH  RED — Indian  red  and  vermilion — glazed 
with  carmice. 

46.  CHOCOLATE  COLOR— Indian  red,  black  and 
yellow. 

47.  YELLO  W  LAKE— Umber  and  white,  equal  parts  ; 
add  yellow  and  lake. 

48.  OLIVE  BROWN— 1  part  lemon  yellow  and  3  burnt 
umber. 

49.  CLAY  DRAB — Raw  sienna,  raw  umber  and  white. 

50.  BISMARCK  BROWN— 1  oz.  carmine,  %  oz.  crimson 
lake,  1  oz.  best  gold  bronz3.  If  desired  lighter,  use  ver- 
milion in  place  of  the  carmine. 

51.  JONQUIL  YELLOW— Flake  white  (tube  color), 
chrome  yellow  and  a  very  little  vermilion  or  carmine. 

52.  CHAMOLINE — A  new  color,  so  named  because  it 
resembles  in  color  that  of  a  chamois  skin  when  wet.  Mix 
lemon  chrome,  1  part]  raw  sienna,  3  parts;  and  white 
about  5  parts,  until  the  approximate  shade  is  reached. 

53.  DARK    MILORI   GREEN   is  specially  adapted    for 


54        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE    AND  WAGOK   PAINTER. 

wagon  bodies.  It  makes  a  very  rich  panel  color,  superior 
to  Prussian  blue,  green,  or  chrome  green,  or  mixtures  of 
blue  and  yellow. 

54.  TEA.  GREEN  is  made  by  mixing  raw  umber,  blue 
and  chrome  green.  It  makes  a  rich  panel-color,  and,  with 
a  sample  of  tea  before  him,  the  painter  can  easily  get  the 
proper  shade. 

55.  WILLOW-LEAF  GREEN— A  veiy  light  yellowish- 
shade  of  olive,  yellow,  blue,  black  and  red. 

56.  PRIMROSE  YELLOW— White  and  King's  yellow,  a 
noted  English  color,  but  not  much  used  in  this  country. 

57.  LE  CUIR  OR  LEATHER  COLOR— One  part  burnt 
umber  and  two  parts  burnt  sienna,  then  tone  with  white. 

58.  JAPAN  BROWN— Black  japan  mixed  with  ver- 
milion. 

59.  DARK  RICH  BROWNS  -Take  Indian  red,  five  parts, 
and  Prussian  blue,  one  part;  grind,  and  mix  in  brown 
Japan  and  turpentine  and  add  a  very  little  oil.  By  chang- 
ing the  proportions  of  ingredients  the  color  can   be  made 

f  light  or  dark  as  desired.  Vermilion  and  black  will  make  a 
very  nice  brown,  but  we  believe  that  all  red-and-black 
browns  are  softened  and  improved  in  tone  by  the  addition 
of  yellow.  Umber  brown  without  the  addition  of  red  is  a 
cold,  raw  color,  unless  placed  beside  a  red  ground  or  stripe. 

GLAZING. 

GLAZING  is  the  term  given  to  a  transparent  coating  put 
over  a  similar  colored  ground,  as  carmine  over  reds,  or  yel- 
low lake  over  yellow  or  green,  or  verdigris  over  green. 
M  my  shades  of  lake  may  be  made  by  glazing  with  car- 
mine, and  there  are  many  who  never  employ  lake  pigments 
in  their  work,  owing  to  its  tendency  to  fade  or  to  flake 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        25 

off  The  ground  being  made  with  Indian  red  and  black, 
according  as  the  shade  of  lake  is  to  be  light  or  dark,  a  glaze 
of  carmine  will  produce  a  beautiful  color  and  one  that  will 
be  durable.  Rich  blues  are  made  by  glazing  Prussian  blue 
lightened  with  white  with  ultramarine.  Glazing  is  simply 
the  dry  pigment  ground  in  rubbing  varnish,  no  oil,  no  japan 
nor  turpentine  being  used,  and  it  is  put  on  in  a  similar  man- 
ner to  varnish,  care  being  taken  not  to  have  clouds  or  runs  in 
the  work. 

In  mixing  colors,  it  is  the  custom  of  some  painters  to  lay 
out  upon  the  stone  the  requisite  quantity  of  various  pig- 
ments, and  then  mix  and  grind  the  mass  in  the  mill,  but 
by  this  means  dull  or  "  lifeless  "  colors  are  produced.  To 
do  this  properly  the  required  pigments  for  a  given  coloi 
should  be  mixed  and  ground  separately,  then  the  proper 
proportions  may  be  put  together  and  thoroughly  mixed.  By 
this  means  all  the  freshness  of  the  color  will  be  retained,  a 
more  perfect  commingling  of  the  particles  will  be  insured, 
and  there  will  be  less  liability  of  separation  in  the  cup,  or 
settling  of  one  heavy  pigment  from  the  others,  which  is 
sure  to  destroy  the  uniformity  of  coloring. 

VERMILION  should  not  be  ground  fine  in  the  mill,  for 
not  only  does  the  iron  surfaces  with  which  it  comes  in 
contact  injure  the  color,  but  the  crushing  of  the  grains 
brings  about  an  orange  tinge  which  is  decidedly  objection- 
able. 

LIGHT  ENGLISH  VERMILION  has  the  greatest  body 
or  covering  power,  and  is  used  for  striping  and  lettering, 
while  the  Deep  English  vermilion  is  better  suited  for 
coloring  gears  or  panels. 

American  vermilion  and  white  lead  forms  a  peach  bios- 


26       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  "WAGON  PAINTER. 

som  pink  which  makes  au  excellent  ground  for  English 
vermilion. 

IVORY  BLACK — Many  purchase  prepared  black  with  the 
expectation  of  getting  an  article  ready  for  spreading  with 
the  brush,  and  when  they  find  that  the  paint  is  too  thick 
and  requires  thinning  to  a  proper  consistency  for  the  work 
in  hand,  they  are  at  a  loss  what  to  do  with  it — whether  to 
add  oil,  turpentine,  varnish  or  Japan — and  in  some  -cases 
the  paint  is  spoiled  by  the  vehicle  used  to  dilute  it.  To  such 
we  would  say:  take  from  the  can  the  required  amount  of 
black,  and  add  just  sufficient  turpentine  to  soften  it  or 
thin  it  to  a  cream-like  consistency,  stirring  it  meanwhile 
with  a  flattened  stick.  Next  add  a  very  small  quantity 
of  raw  od  and  test  it  on  the  thumb  nail  until  it  dries  not 
too  dead.  Be  careful  not  to  use  too  much  oil,  for  too  much 
is  worse  than  none  at  all,  while  the  proper  quantity  gives 
ease  in  spreading  and  durability  to  the  work. 

PUTTY. 

The  next  in  order  is  Putty,  and  as  there  are  several 
kinds  for  the  several  purposes  we  will  give  recipes  for  each. 
Putty  should  be  tempered  with  either  oil,  varnish,  or  japan, 
according  to  the  purposes  to  which  it  is  put.  These 
are: 

First. — White  Putty,  composed  of  keg  lead  and  dry  lead 
and  whiting.  The  dry  pigments  are  beaten  and  worked 
into  the  keg  lead  until  of  a  putty  consistency,  then  a  little 
brown  japan  is  added  to  cause  it  to  dry  well,  and  a  little 
more  whiting  is  worked  in  to  bring  about  a  stiff  putty  for 
filling  holes,  leaving  it  softer  for  filling  the  grain  of  ash, 
etc. 

Second.—  Quick  Putty— Take  dry  lead    and    whiting, 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         27 

equal  parts,  and  mix  to  putty  with  equal  parts  brown 
japan  and  rubbing  varnish. 

Third. — Black  Putty — For  hurried  work  mix  the  same 
as  quick  putty,  using  lampblack  in  place  of  whiting. 

Fourth. — Black  Putty  for  Irons— To  be  used  where 
the  iron  work  does  not  fit  the  wood.  Mix  three-fourths 
lampblack  with  one-fourth  dry  lead  or  whiting,  with 
japan. 

Fifth.— Black  Bedding  Putty— For  glass  frames  mix 
lampblack  and  whiting  in  equal  parts  (bulk)  with  equal 
parts  of  rubbing  varnish  and  japan  to  a  soft  putty  consist- 
ency. Then  having  some  black  velvet  or  plush  at  hand, 
unravel  it  so  as  to  secure  the  short  fibres  of  the  material, 
which,  when  mixed  with  the  putty  in  the  same  manner  as 
hair  is  mixed  with  plaster,  will  bind  it  firmly  together  and 
no  jar  of  the  vehicle  will  cause  it  to  crack  and  fly  out. 
This  putty  is  excellent  for  bedding  the  glasses  of  hearses 
and  is  used  by  most  hearse  builders  in  preference  to  any 
other. 

The  ordinary  putty  of  the  glazier  finds  no  place  in  a 
wagon  paint  shop. 

It  is  a  good  plan  to  color  putty  to  a  color  similar  to  the 
job;  as,  for  exa  nple,  if  the  job  is  to  be  red,  add  a  little  red 
to  the  putty;  if  green,  add  green,  and  so  on. 


CHAPTER  III. 

PRIMING. 

Having  our  shop  tools  and  paints  ready  for  use  and 
being  somewhat  acquainted  with  the  mixing  of  paints  of 
various  colors,  we  will  take  for  the  first  lesson  in  painting 
a  platform  geared  business  wagon  with  ribbed  body  and 
panel  top. 

There  are  several  methods  of  reaching  a  final  finish,  and 
it  will  be  well  to  glance  at  each.  Then  he  who  chooses 
to  follow  one  path  may  do  so,  while  his  neighbor  can  take 
another. 

LEAD  COLOR    METHOD. 

First  comes  the  old  or  lead  color  method.  As  soon  as 
the  body,  wheels  and  bars  are  completed  by  the  wood- 
worker, a  coat  of  priming  should  be  put  on  to  prevent  the 
raising  of  the  grain  of  the  wood.  This  priming  is  made  of 
pure  linseed  oil,  slightly  colored  with  white  lead.  A  small 
quantity  of  brown  japan  may  be  added  to  hasten  the  dry- 
ing, though  some  prefer  to  omit  the  drier  when  time  is  of 
no  account.  The  oil  of  the  priming  is  the  main  depend- 
ence. It  is  soaked  into  the  pores  of  the  wood  and  partly 
seals  them  against  the  entrance  of  moisture  while  the 
small  grains  of  lead  partially  close  up  the  largest 
pores. 

The  tread  of  the  wheel  should  be  coated,  as  that  prevents 
the  swelling  of  the  rim  or  felloe,  while  the  tire  is  being 
put  on.     Just  here  let  me  remark  that  a  the  should  never 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         29 

be  60  hot  as  to  scorch  or  char  the  wood.  There  is  no  ne-. 
cessity  for  it,  and  a  careful  workman  will  not  permit  it. 

The  spring  bars  or  blocks  should  be  coated  all  over.  Tho 
coating  now  put  on  acts  as  a  preventive  coat,  as  shown 
above.     When  it  is  dry  the  work  is  ready  for  the  smith. 

The  body  will  not  be  wante  I  at  once,  so  we  can  prime  it 
with  some  kind  of  paint,  all  over,  excepting  the  floor. 
Some  simply  prime  the  outside,  leaving  the  inside  un- 
painted  for  the  time.  That  is  an  error,  for  the  bare  wood 
is  apt  to  abscrb  dampness  and  the  broad  side  panels  are 
liable  to  check.  The  priming  being  allowed  from  36  to  48 
hours  for  drying,  it  may  then  receive  a  good  sandpapering 
with  No.  2  sandpaper.  The  largest  nail  holes  may  then  be 
puttied  with  putty  made  as  per  formula  No.  1,  previously 
spoken  of,  leaving  the  small  holes  to  be  partly  filled  with 
paint.  Dust  off  clean  and  apply, 

THE  FIRST  COAT  OF  LEAD. 

This  paint  may  be  mixed  as  follows  :  Take  from  the  keg 
the  required  amount  of  white  lead,  say,  two  pounds,  and 
make  into  a  paste-like  consistency  with  raw  oil ;  then  add 
one-half  as  much  brown  japan,  and  finally,  thin  to  a  work- 
ing consistency  with  turpentine.  Lay  this  paint  on  as 
evenly  and  sparingly  as  possible  to  cover  the  ground,  for  a 
thick  coating  is  not  desirable.  Rub  it  into  the  wood  as  well 
?,s  you  can  with  the  brush  and  stand  the  job  aside  to  dry. 

"When  this  coat  is  dry,  it  will  be  best  to  go  over  every 
part  of  the  frame,  seat  raisers,  etc.,  which  are  of  hard 
wood,  and  plaster  the  grain  full  of  soft  putty  as  per  form- 
ula No.  2.  This  being  quick  drying,  may  be  sandpapered 
in  an  hour  or  so.  The  sandpaper  used  in  scouring  the 
priming  coat  will  be  good  enough  for  this  work,   as  it  is 


30        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

not  our  desire  to  cut  through  the  paint,  but  to  simply 
smooth  it.  Many  err  in  this  ;  they  apply  a  coat  of  paint, 
an  1  then  sandpaper  it  nearly  all  off  again,  which  is  just  so 
much  time  and  material  wasted.  The  rule  should  be  to 
first  make  the  job  smooth,  and  then  apply  the  paint  in  as 
neat  and  clean  a  manner  as  possible,  avoiding  all  necessity 
for  hard  sandpapering. 

ROUGH-STUFFING   THE  PANELS. 

On  extra  fine  wagon  work  the  body  panels  are  coated 
with  rough-stuff  and  rubbed  with  pumice  stone  ;  but  for 
ordinary  work  this  is  not  necessary.  But  the  large  side 
panels  may  be  rough-stuffed,  and  we  will  now  look  for  the 
best  mixture  for  the  purpose. 

Fire  proof  paint,  Grafton  paint,  Ohio  paint,  and  English 
filling  are  all  one  and  the  same  thing  ;  the  latter  being  sim- 
ply Grafton  paint  exported  to  England,  there  colored,  and 
returned  to  this  country  as  "English  filling,"  and  the 
price  quadrupled. 

Procure  either  of  these,  with  an  equal  quantity,  by 
weight,  of  keg  lead,  and  mix  with  equal  parts  of  brown 
japan  and  rubbing  varnish.  Run  it  through  the  mill 
loosely  and  thin  it  to  work  nicely,  with  turpentine.  No 
better  rough-stuff  can  be  had.  The  only  advantage  gained 
in  using  prepared  rough-stuff  is  that  by  being  mixed  in 
large  quantities  it  is  apt  to  be  more  uniform  than  that 
mixed  by  the  painter.  Rough-stuff  should  not  be  applied 
thick,  like  mud,  but  should  receive  as  much  care  in  its 
application  as  any  other  paint.  If  it  be  put  on  thick,  and 
with  brush-marks  showing,  the  finish  will  show  the  marks 
just  as  plainly. 

The  purpose  in  using  rough-stuu  is  to  produce  a  surface 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        31 

having  sufficient  grit  to  cause  it  to  level  down  nicely  by 
rubbing  it  with  lump  pumice  stone.  For  wagon  work, 
two  coats  are  generally  sufficient,  but  on  carriage  work 
as  many  as  five  are  sometimes  applied.  The  coat  of  rough- 
stuff  having  been  put  on  as  directed,  give  it  from  24  to  48 
hours  to  dry;  then  apply  the  second  coat.  No  prepara- 
tions, such  as  sandpapering,  etc.,  need  be  made;  simply 
aust  off  the  job  and  apply  the  paint. 

It  is  the  best  plan,  to  let  the  smith  have  the  body  while 
in  rough-stuff,  for  then  if  he  burns  or  bruises  any  part,  it 
can  be  readily  repaired  before  the  "rubbing  down"  is 
begun. 

The  ironing  of  the  gears  and  body  being  now  completed, 
we  will  take  in  hand  the  gears,  which,  up  to  the  present, 
have  received  the  priming  or  preventive  coat  only. 

LEADINO    THE  GEARS. 

Slipping  out  the  king-bolt,  we  run  the  front  platfoim 
from  under  the  body,  and  then,  resting  the  front  on  the 
barrel,  and  the  hind  axle  on  benches,  we  remove  the  hind 
wheels,  leaving  the  body  in  a  position  to  be  worked  at 
conveniently.  The  gears  now  receive  a  good  "cutting 
down"  with  coarse  sandpaper,  until  but  little  of  the  prim- 
ing coat  is  discerned,  and,  after  a  good  dusting,  these  parts 
are  ready  for  the  lead.  As  we  are  about  to  paint  the  gears 
with  English  vermilion,  it  will  be  well  to  apply  a  pink  or 
peach-blossom  paint  to  serve  for  a  ground  work  ;  there- 
fore, we  mix  keg  lead  with  oil  to  a  thick  mass,  and  stir  in 
enough  Venetian  red,  or  American  vermilion,  to  form  a 
clean  pink  color  ;  then,  add  one-half  as  much  brown 
Japan  as  you  used  of  the  oil.  stir  well,  and  run  through 
the  mill.     Next,  thin  with  turpentine  and  apply  as  evenly 


fit 


■ 


89       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

as  possible  to  every  part  of  the  gears,  the  under  side  as 
well  as  other  parts.  Clean  up  nicely  around  the  butts  of 
spokes,  nuts,  bolt-heads,  etc.,  and  stand  aside  for  dry- 
ing. 

The  body  having  been  looked  over,  and  all  bruised 
places  repaired  with  putty,  is  in  condition  for  rubbing,  so 
selecting  several  pieces  of  pumice  stone,  and  preparing  a 
pail  of  clean  water,  a  sponge,  chamois  skin  and  a  water 
tool,  begin  the 

RUBBING  OUT  OP  ROUGH-STUFF. 

There  seems  to  be  nothing  so  well  adapted  for  rubbing 
the  surface  of  paint,  preparatory  to  laying  on  the  finer 
coats  of  color,  etc.,  as  pumice-stone  (the  lava  thrown 
from  volcanoes).  It  is  porous,  inexpensive,  and  possesses 
admirable  frlctional  properties.  The  first  of  these  quali- 
ties renders  it  excellent  as  a  rubber;  its  porosity  allows  it  to 
cleanse  itself,  or,  in  other  words,  the  refuse  rubbed  from 
the  surface  of  the  paint  lodg£s,in  the  pores,  while  the  pro- 
jecting portions  continue  to  cut,  and  the  application  of 
water  removes  from  the  pores  the  refuse.  If,  of  good 
quality,  it  cuts  down  the  paint  rapidly,  and  a  clean  cutting 
surface  is  exposed  to  the  paint  at  all  times.  Pumice  stone, 
however,  lacks  uniformity;  some  lumps  being  heavy,  with 
closed  pores,  presenting  a  stone-like  appearance,  while 
others  are  light  and  open-grained.  The  latter  is  the  best. 
The  stone,  when  selected,  should  first  be  dipped  in  water, 
that  its  grain  may  easily  be  seen,  and  then  cut  with  an  old 
saw  across  the  grain,  so  that  the  pores  may  retain  as  fully 
as  possible  their  clearing  and  cutting  qualities.  Large 
pieces  should  be  used  when  practicable,  so  as  not  to  rub 
the  surface  into  hollows. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  ANI    WAGON  PAINTER.        33 

There  is  another  species  of  stone  much  used  for  rubbing 
rough-stuff,  and  known  as  "  English  rubbing  stone."  It 
is  a  sort  of  sandstone  of  fine  quality,  and  is  a  greater  ab- 
sorbent of  water  than  pumice  or  other  qualities  of  sand 
stone.  It  must  be  kept  in  a  damp  place,  otherwise  it  be- 
comes hard  and  flinty.  For  rough  work  this  stone  may 
answer  a  good  purpose,  but  it  is  almost  too  coarse  for  fine 
work.  There  is  also  in  the  market  a  prepared  brick  or 
stone,  of  German  origin,  branded  with  the  name  of 
Schumachersche  Fabrik.  (It  may  have  been  originally  in- 
tended as  a  whetstone  for  shoemakers.)  It  is  used  by 
many  first-class  builders,  and  has  superseded  lump  pumice 
in  a  measure,  although  it  will  never  entirely  take  its  place. 

The  stone  having  been  chosen  according  to  the  conditions 
explained  above,  or  as  nearly  as  cir6umstance's  will  permit, 
the  pieces  should  be  cut  and  smoothed  by  rubbing  them 
upon  a  flat  stone.  The  stone  should  set  nicely  to  the 
surface  and  be  moved  either, in  circles  as  in  polishing,  or 
lengthwise  of  the  panel,  pressing  firmly  upon  it,  but  not 
too  hard,  for  it  would  then  rag  or  tear  up  the  paint. 
Plenty  of  water  must  be  used  to  prevent  heating.  It  is  the 
practice  of  many  to  apply  a  "guide  coat"  or  "  stain" 
over  the  rough  stuff  (this  is  simply  a  mixture  of  dry 
pigment  and  japan  and  turpentine,  put  on  very  thin) 
to  enable  the  rubber  to  see  when  he  has  rubbed  the  sur.  \ 
face  level,  as  when  all  the  "  stain  "  is  rubbed  off  the  sur-'l 
face  should  be  perfect.  As  the  work  continues,  the  stone 
should  be  pressed  more  and  more  lightly,  and  more  water 
should  be  used,  in  order  that  all  fine  scratches  may  be  re- 
moved. "When  the  "  rubbing  out "  is  completed,  wash  the 
\ob   '    \  using  the  water  tool  (a  common  sash-tool)  to 


34        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

clean  out  corners,  etc.,  then  dry  off  with  a  chamois  skin, 
and  stand  the  job  aside  for  the  evaporation  of  any  mois- 
ture which  may  remain  in  the  pores  of  the  paint. 

PUTTING  THE  FINAL  FOUNDATION  COAT  ON   THE  GEARS. 

The  gears  we  left  in  pink  colored  lead  to  dry,  and  these 
must  now  receive  attention.  Putty  for  this  job  should  be 
made  as  follows  :  Take  equal  parts  (bulk)  of  keg  lead  and 
whiting,  and  beat  the  whiting  into  the  lead  with  a  wooden 
mallet,  until  the  mass  is  of  a  putty  consistency;  add  a  little 
red,  and  a  very  little  brown  japan  and  knead  all  together 
nicely.  Next  go  over  every  part  and  putty  up  all  holes  or 
imperfections,  and  plaster  the  fronts  of  spokes  and  any 
other  open-grained  places.  When  this  is  dry,  which  will 
be  perhaps  in  an  hour  or  two,  smooth  down  all  parts,  par- 
ticularly the  putty,  with  partly  worn  sandpaper,  dust  off, 
and  apply  a  coat  of  the  following  mixture:  Take  keg  lead 
and  mix  it  to  a  soft  paste  with  turpentine,  add  one  gill  of 
brown  japan  to  every  pint  of  paint,  then  color  it  by  the 
addition  of  American  vermilion.  It  will  do  no  harm,  and 
add  greatly  to  the  durability  of  the  work  to  add  say,  a 
tablespoonful  of  raw  oil,  but  if  the  job  must  be  hurried 
this  may  be  omitted.  This  being  the  final  coat  of  the  foun- 
dation, it  should  be  applied  as  smoothly  as  possible,  and  the 
under  parts  need  not  receive  this  coating. 

PAINTING  THE  BODY. 

The  body  now  being  dry,  take  the  finest  sandpaper  and 
gently  rub  over  the  rubbed  portion,  and  nicely  prepare  the 
ribs,  etc. ,  for  color.  It  is  customary  witli  some  painters  to  lay 
on  a  ground  coat  of  some  color  corresponding  with  the  hue 
of  the  color  the  job  is  to  be  painted,  but  this  is  not  positive- 
ly necessary,  for  its  purpose  is  merely  to  economize  time 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.        ifi 

and  expensive  color.  With  the  exception  of  a  few  extra 
fine  or  transparent  colors,  which  are  intensified  or  made 
more  brilliant  by  application  over  particular  grounds,  the 
color  may  just  as  well  be  laid  directly  on  the  rough-stuff  or 
lead  surface.  This  job  we  will  paint  green  panels,  black  ribs, 
and  black  top  sides,  with  name  panel  in  vermilion,  glazed 
with  carmine.  The  color  for  the  panels  will  be  best  per= 
haps,  if  we  use  deep  Milori  green,  or  we  may  use  chrome 
green  deepened  with  Prussian  blue,  whichever  is  at  hand. 

Milori  green,  however,  makes  the  richest  color,  and  it 
may  be  mixed  as  we  have  before  directed,  i.e.,  mix  and 
grind  in  brown  japan,  thin  with  turpentine  ;  then  add  one 
tablespoonful  of  raw  linseed  oil  to  every  pint  of  paint. 
The  name  panel  or  belt  may  be  coated  with  light  English 
vermilion  this  time,  as  that  covers  better  than  the  deep, 
and  the  top,  sides,  etc.,  may  have  a  coat  of  lampblack. 
These  colors  must  be  laid  on  with  camel's  hair  brushes  to 
have  them  as  thin  and  smooth  as  can  be,  and  in  painting 
the  body  panels  the  ribs  should  receive  as  much  attention 
as  the  panel,  no  matter  if  they  are  ultimately  to  be  in 
black.  The  inside  of  the  body  may  at  this  time  be  painted 
with  a  light  pea  green. 

While  the  bofly  is  drying  we  will  lightly  sandpaper  the 
gears,  and  apply  a  coat  of  American  vermilion,  using  a  flat 
bristle  brush  and  sash  tool.  This  forms  a  good  ground  for 
the  English  vermilion,  which  will  be  the  next  in  order. 
The  ends  of  the  hubs,  and  the  ends  of  the  pole  or  shafts 
need  not  be  painted  with  the  vermilion,  for  those  parts 
will  be  "blacked  off." 

THE  SECOND  COAT  ON  THE  BODY. 

A  second  coat  of  color  is  now  in  order  on  the  body,  hav- 


36        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND    WAGON  PAINTER. 

ing  allowed  several  hours  tor  drying.  A  good  "mossing 
off  "  tbat  is  rubbing  over  the  surface  of  paint  with  a  bunch 
of  moss  or  curled  hair,  prepares  it  for  color.  Milori  green 
on  body  panels.  Deep  English  vermilion  on  name  panel 
or  belt,  and  ivory  black  on  top.  Give  at  least  five  hours 
for  drying,  then  apply  color  and  varnish,  which  is  made 
by  adding  to  rubbing  varnish  a  sufficient  amount  of  the 
color  to  slightly  stain  it.  This  preserves  the  freshness  of" 
the  color.  The  green,  the  red,  and  the  black  must  all  be 
done  alike,  and  varnish  brushes  should  be  used  for  this 
work.  It  is  as  necessary  to  use  care  in  applying  color  and 
varnish  to  have  it  clean,  and  without  runs,  as  if  applying 
a  finishing  coat  of  varnish,  for  if  it  be  well  done  there  will 
be  less  rubbing  to  do  in  finishing,  and  a  better  job  will 
result.  Some  slap  on  color  and  varnish  with  the  thought 
"it  has  to  be  rubbed  smooth,"  but  that  is  not  the  proper 
way  and  the  thought  and  aim  should  be  to  see  "how  nicely 
I  can  put  on  this  coat." 

PAINTING    THE    GEARS. 

The  color  and  varnish  on  the  body,  let  us  now  color  the 
gears.  Rubbing  over  every  part  with  fine  sandpaper  or 
curled  hair,  we  mix  English  vermilion  (deep),  as  before  di- 
rected, and  apply  a  nice,  even  coat  over  all,  bottom  of 
axles,  springs,  etc.,  as  well  as  the  top;  stand  the  work 
aside  to  dry,  which  will  be  perhaps  two  hours  ;  then  put 
on  a  heavy  coat  of  color  and  varnish — made  by  adding  a 
little  of  the  vermilion  color  to  rubbing  varnish. 

The  whole  job  is  now  in  color  and  varnish,  and,  when 
dry  (say  after  48  hours,  if  not  hurried),  the  rubbing  of 
the  body  with  pulverized  pumice  stone  is  in  order.      The 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         37 

gears  do  not  require  rubbing  with  pumice  ;    they  may  be 
"  haired  off"  preparatory  to  striping. 

Procuring  some  pulverized  pumice  stone — the  grade  best 
suited  is  known  as  No.  12,  No.  14  being  finer— some  pieces 
of  woolen  cloth  for  "rub-rags,"  clean  water,  sponge,  cham- 
ois skin  and  water-tool  we  are  ready  for 

THE   RUBBING  PROCESS. 

To  do  this  nicely,  begin  on  the  upper  part  of  the  body 
and  work  downward.  First  fold  the  rub-rag  into  several 
folds  or  thicknesses,  and  saturate  it  well  with  water  ,  dip 
it  into  the  ground  pumice  and  then  begin  the  work  of 
rubbing.  Bear  on  quite  hard,  and  keep  the  rag  well  wet 
and  also  well  supplied  with  the  pumice  powder.  Pass  your 
finger  over  the  parts  rubbed,  occasionally,  to  see  whether 
you  have  yet  made  the  surface  smooth  ;  if  so  wash  off  the 
panel  and  dry  it  with  the  chamois.  Proceed.in  like  manner 
over  all  until  the  body  has  a  clean  egg-shell  gloss,  and  ap- 
pears perfectly  free  from  pits  or  specks.  "W  hen  this  is 
done  the  job  is  ready  for  lettering,  excepting  the  name 
panel,  which  is  yet  to  be  glazed  with  carmine.  This  we  will 
do  at  once-.  Grind  a  small  quantity  of  carmine  No.  40  in 
rubbing  varnish,  then  dilute  it  with  more  of  the  same 
varnish,  and  apply  a  flowing  coat  in  the  same  manner  as 
clear  varnish,  being  careful  not  to  have  runs,  clouds,  or 
heavy  flows. 

This  done,  and  the  inside  having  been  second-coated 
with  pea  green,  we  can  say  the  painting  is  complete. 

The  gears  being  rubbed  with  curled  hair  or  moss,  are 
ready  for  striping,  and  we  will  leave  them  for  the  present 
to  give  directions  for  bringing  up  a  job  to  this  point  by 
another  process. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  PUTTY  KNIFE  METHOD. 

When  the  priming  and  first  coat  of  lead,  as  previously 
described  are  dry,  mix  some  keg-lead  with  turpentine  and 
japan,  equal  parts,  add  a  very  little  lampblack,  or  red, 
or  green,  according  to  the  color  the  job  is  to  be  painted, 
making  the  paint  a  stiff  paste  or  soft  putty  consistency. 
With  a  stiff  brush  spread  this  on  to  a  small  portion  of  the 
body,  say  :  four  panels.  It  will  then  be  noticed  that  as  fast 
as  the  turpentine  evaporates,  the  paint  will  become 
"dead"  in  appearance,  and  when  quite  dead  or  "flat," 
take  a  broad  bladed  putty-knife  and  plaster  over,  the  same 
as  if  it  were  putty  ;  pressing  the  paint  into  the  pores  and 
inequalities  of  the  wood,  and  scraping  off  all  that  is  not  re- 
quired to  so  fill  up.  Go  on  in  this  manner  until  the  body 
has  all  been  passed  over,  and  set  the  job  aside  to  dry.  The 
gears  may  be  done  in  a  similar  manner,  using  a  stout  piece 
of  harness  leather  for  rubbing  the  paint  on  spokes  and 
other  round  places.  When  this  plaster  coat  is  dry,  cut  it 
down  nicely  with  sandpaper,  and  apply  the  color  direct ; 
then  color  and  vamish.  This  is  a  much  cheaper  plan  than 
rough-stuffing,  and  when  well  done,  the  job  will  look  near- 
ly as  well. 

ANOTHER  WAY. 

An  improved  plan  is  to  mix  with  the  plastering  paint, 
one-half  the  bul  •  of  Wheeler's  Patent  Wood  Filler,  a  mixt- 
ure of  silica  or  flint,  which,  when  ground  fine,  forms  small 
angular  grains  or  needle-like  pieces,  which  adhere  to  wood 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  ANT)  "WAGON  PAINTER.        39 

very  firmly,  and  being  impervious  to  any  liquid,  com- 
pletely seal  up  the  pores  of  wood  against  the  admission  of 
moisture,  or  the  oil  from  subsequent  coats. 

THE  WOOD  FILLING  METHOD. 

The  body  having  been  completed,  no  further  than  the 
frame-work,  it  receives  a  priming  of  wood  filling.  The 
chamfers  and  faces  of  the  rails  or  ribs  are  then  plastered 
with  hard-drying  putty  and  sandpapered,  being  then  ready 
for  color.  The  panels  are  got  out  and  smoothed  by  the 
body  maker,  being  left  from  i  to  £  of  an  inch  wider  than 
necessary  to  fit  the  body,  to  allow  for  shrinkage.  These 
then  receive  wood  filling,  which  is  applied  freely  and  im- 
mediately wiped  over  with  rags,  until  no  surface  coating 
is  left,  nearly  all  the  filling  having  penetrated  the  wood. 
Give  two  days  for  drying,  and  then  apply  rough-stuff  mad  e 
as  follows  :  Grafton  paint  or  Eng.  filling  3  parts,  white 
lead  (keg)  2  parts,  oil  japan  2  parts,  rubbing  varnish  1  part : 
dilute  with  turpentine.  For  the  first  coat  add  a  table- 
spoonful  of  oil  to  a  pint  of  paint,  because  that  which 
comes  next  to  the  elastic  priming  must  be  more  elastic 
than  the  subsequent  coats.  A  period  of  48  hours  must 
now  be  allowed  for  the  first  coat  of  roughstuff  to  dry, 
after  which  two  coats  without  oil  in  the  mixture  may  be 
applied  each  day.  Give  one  day  for  the  stain  or  guide 
coat  to  dry,  and  then  rub  down  as  before  described.  The 
panels  may  now  be  fitted  to  their  places,  screwing  them 
fast  from  the  inside,  thus  leaving  the  outside  of  the  body 
in  good  order  for  color. 

We  specially  recommend  this  method  of  rough-stuffing 
the  panels  before  they  are  fitted,  inasmuch  as  that  part 
between  the  panel  and  rib  is  thus  well  painted,  allowing 


40        THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

no  chance  of  injury  by  water  entering  at  those  places  ;  and 
besides,  it  allows  of  making  a  smooth  job  with  less  labor. 

The  gears  having  been  similarly  primed  with  wood 
filling,  and  the  smith  having  completed  his  work  upon 
them,  the  first  operation  is  a  good  cutting  down  with  No. 
3  sandpaper,  which  prepares  the  work  for  a  coat  of  lead — 
pure  keg  lead,  mixed  with  oil,  japan  and  turpentine. 
When  this  is  dry,  the  puttying  up  of  all  open-grained ' 
places  and  holes  are  in  order.  The  second  coat  of  lead  paint, 
containing  a  little  chrome  yellow  and  a  trifling  amount  of 
vermilion  to  form  a  rich  cream  color,  is  next  applied. 
Two  coats  of  this  will  suffice  for  the  color,  when  color  and 
varnish  should  be  put  on.  When  this  is  dry,  moss  off  for 
striping. 

Having  brought  the  wagon  up  to  the  striping,  lettering, 
and  ornamenting  we  will  now  take  a  retrospective  view 
and  note  the  particular  points  not  so  fully  explained  here- 
tofore. 

VARNISHING. 

The  varnishing  of  a  carriage  body  is  a  very  delicate 
operation,  and  requires  a  considerable  amount  of  practical 
knowledge  on  the  part  of  the  workman,  if  he  would  pro- 
duce satisfactory  results.  But  it  is  not  so  difficult  to  var- 
nish a  wagon  body,  notwithstanding.  To  those  not  ac- 
customed to  this  class  of  work,  it  seems  a  big  job  to  var- 
nish the  sides  of  a  large  furniture  van,  for  instance,  which 
spreads  over  a  surface  of  120  square  feet,  or  an  animal  cage 
of  a  little  less  surface,  but  it  is  quite  easily  done  with 
proper  facilities.  The  brushes  used  for  such  work  are  flat 
ones,  "double  thick"  4  inches  wide,  of  French  bristles. 
The  workman  begins  at  one  end,  laying  on  the  varnish  up 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER.        41 

and  down,  and  "  finishing  up5'  as  he  proceeds  lap  after  lap 
the  width  of  the  brush.  With  quick  setting  varnish  two 
men  are  put  to  work,  one  laying  on  the  varnish,  the  other 
finishing  up. 

On  ordinaiy  business  wagons,  trucks,  etc.,  much  more 
care  is  given  to  the  final  finish  than  was  the  case  a  few  years 
ago,  and  in  some  shops  expert  carriage  varnishers  have  been 
employed  in  order  to  turn  out  extra  jobs.  So  to  carry  out 
our  plan  of  making  a  first-class  job  we  will  go  into  minute 
details  regarding  the 

VARNISHING  OP  WAGONS   AND  SLEIGHS. 

So  far  as  the  room  is  concerned,  we  will  say  but  little,  as 
we  have  already  touched  on  that  subject.  In  the  first 
place  the  room  should  be  provided  with  a  heating  arrange- 
ment by  which  a  unif  orm  degree  of  heat  may  be  main- 
tained, and  where  no  other  means  can  be  resorted  to,  a 
large  self -feeding  stove  should  be  put  up,  although  it  is 
best  to  have  the  stove  in  the  paint  room  and  close  to  the 
partition  of  the  varnish  room,  the  partition  at  that  place 
being  made  of  sheet  iron.  This  will  generally  suffice  to 
heat  both  rooms.  The  room  should  be  free  from  every- 
thing not  necessary  for  the  job  in  hand,  for  dust  will 
accumulate  on  pictures  or  other  wall  hangings  to  the  det- 
riment of  the  work.  The  rubbing  with  pumice-stone,  and 
the  cleaning  of  the  body  should  be  done  in  the  paint  rooms, 
for  we  do  not  want  the  floor  of  the  varnish  room  soaked 
with  water — not  even  sprinkled — for  the  evaporation  of 
moisture  from  the  floor  is  very  apt  to  cause  "pitting," 
"enameling,"  and  other  difficulties.  The  rubbing  coats 
of  varnish,  that  is  the  color-and-varnish,  and  the  clear 
rubbing  varnish,  over  the  lettering,  and  striping, — having 


42       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

been  applied  with  as  much  care  as  if  a  finishing  coat,  the 
final  rubbing  is  now  in  order.  The  rubbing  or  leveling  of 
varnish  with  pulverized  pumice  stone  and  water  bears  an 
important  part  in  the  work  of  making  a  fine  finish. 

Finish  each  part  as  you  proceed,  leaving  a  nice  clean 
surface,  well  washed  and  shammied.  The  work  of  rubbing 
done,  carry  the  body  to  the  varnish  room  and  set  it  upon 
barrels  or  boxes  as  before  ;  then  with  a  large  round  duster 
— one  kept  for  the  varnish  room — give  the  body  a  thorough 
dusting.  It  is  a  good  plan  to  moisten  the  palm  of  the 
hand  with  finishing  varnish,  and  then  to  pass  the  end  of 
the  duster  over  it  to  slightly  moisten  the  bristles,  which 
enables  it  to  pick  up  any  Lint  left  by  the  shammy. 


Fig.  8. — Standard  Varnish  BrusJies. 

For  most  jobs  the  flat  bristle  brush  is  considered  best. 
They  are  furnished  in  sets,  and  the  bristles  should  be 
set  in  glue. 

The  varaisher,  now  having  everything  ready,  the  work 
of  laying  on  the  varnish  is  begun.  The  pumice  stone 
should  be  well  examined  to  discover  if  any  grains  of  grit 
or  sand  are  in  it,  for  sometimes  one  scratch  across  a  panel 
will  disfigure  the  whole  job.  The  rub-rag,  sponge, 
shammy,  water,  etc.,  should  all  be  as  clean  as  possible — 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.        43 

and  by  all  means  see  to  it  that  neither  the  pail,  sponge  nor 
shammy  have  been  used  for  washing  the  hands.  In  rub- 
bing, the  pumice  powder  must  not  be  allowed  to  dry  on 
the  work,  but  must  be  kept  wet,  or  washed  off  frequently. 
In  beginning  a  panel,  first  pass  the  wet  sponge  over  it  to 
take  off  any  dust  there  may  be  upon  it,  then  seek  the 
roughest  portions  and  give  particular  attention  to  them  ; 
the  smoother  parts  will  be  passed  over  often  enough  to 
level  them  withou  t  that  especial  care.  All  sharp  edges  and 
moldings  should  be  slighted,  or  they  may  be  cut  through, 
which  wTould  necessitate  touching  up,  and  that  requires 
time,  while  the  job  is  not  improved  thereby.  It 
would  baa  useless  task  for  us  to  direct  the  manner  of  var- 
nishing— suffice  it  to  say,  go  at  the  work  with  confidence 
in  your  ability  to  do  it  properly.  Flow  on  the  varnish 
plentifully, — a  sparse  coat  will  not  make  a  good  job — 
lay  off  the  large  panels  with  up  and  down  strokes  of  the 
brush,  let  it  set  a  moment,  then  with  a  sharpened  whale- 
bone go  over  and  pick  out  any  specks  that  are  seen,  and  then 
immediately  run  the  brush  from  bottom  to  top  very  light- 
ly to  finish.  Go  all  over  the  job  in  this  manner  and  you 
may  rest  assured  that  your  work  will  come  out  all  right. 

The  gears  may  be  varnished  in  the  paint  room,  provid- 
ing there  is  not  room  enough  in  the  varnish  room,  for 
these  do  not  require  so  much  care.  However,  they  should 
receive  a  goodly  share  of  varnish,  and  this  brings  us  to  the 
finish  of  the  work.  We  will  now  look  at  some  of  the  ills 
that  beset  the  painter. 

SWEATING. 

Sweating  of  varnish  is  liable  to  occur  after  it  has  been 
rubbed  and  allowed  to  stand  a  while.    This  is  caused  by 


44        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

the  varnish  not  having  had  proper  time  for  drying.  Proper 
care  is  not  taken,  at  times,  to  lay  the  rubbing  coats  as  they 
should  be  :  they  are  applied  too  heavy  or  with  specks  and 
brush  marks  showing,  and  to  get  the  surface  smooth  too 
tnuch  rubbing  has  to  be  done  ;  then  the  varnish  will 
probably  sweat.  To  overcome  this,  rub  the  job  lightly  with 
pumice  stone  and  apply  the  varnish  immediately  before 
the  surface  has  time  to  sweat.  But  when  time  can  con- 
veniently be  given  for  the  varnish  to  become  hard  it  is 
certainly  best. 

Varnish  that  has  ' '  sweated  out  "  if  varnished  over  with- 
out first  rubbing  the  sweaty  gloss  off  is  liable  to  cause 
pitting,  or  pinholing,  and  enameling,  three  of  the  worst 
evils  that  the  paint  shop  is  heir  to. 

CLEANING  NEW  BRUSHES. 

To  clean  a  new  varnish  brush,  hold  it  over  a  piece  of 
enameled  cloth  or  patent  leather,  and  work  the  dry  bristles 
in  the  hands  so  long  as  there  is  seen  any  little  white  specks 
coming  from  it,  then  dip  it  in  rubbing  varnish  and  use  on 
common  work  until  you  are  sure  the  dirt  is  all  out.  Never 
wash  a  brush  in  turpentine  if  it  can  be  avoided.  If  a  brush 
gets  dirty  by  a  fall  to  the  floor,  hold  it  up  with  the  bristles 
pointing  downward,  and  pour  turpentine  over  it,  allowing 
it  to  run  off  carrying  the  dirt  with  it.  Keep  your  varnish 
brushes  suspended  in  varnish — or,  what  is  better,  get  from 
the  varnish-maker  some  finishing  varnish  made  with  no 
driers  in  it.  This  will  keep  your  brushes  in  good  condi- 
tion for  years,  and  never  give  trouble  in  varnishing. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  CARE  OF  MATERIALS. 

Keep  paint  brushes  suspended  in  water,  allowing  th 
water  to  come  just  over  the  lower  part  of  the  binding.  In 
winter  throw  a  handful  of  salt  into  the  water  to  keep  it 
from  freezing.  A  shop  should  be  supplied  with  a  sufficient 
number  of  brushes,  so  that  it  will  not  be  necessary  to 
change  one  from  one  color  to  another,  except  in  rare 
cases. 

Pumice-stone  should  be  kept  in  a  covered  box  to  exclude 
dust,  for  a  job  may  be  ruined  by  a  single  scratch  caused 
by  some  foreign  subtance  in  the  pumice. 

FAILURES  IN  VARNISHING. 

Failure  to  make  a  good  job  of  varnishing  may  some- 
times be  traced  to  one  of  the  following  causes,  viz. :  When 
the  pail  or  bucket  is  used  for  holding  the  water  with 
which  the  hands  are  washed  from  oil  and  dirt. 

When  the  chamois  (shammy)  has  been  rinsed  in  greasy 
and  dirty  water,  or  been  used  as  a  towel. 

When  the  sponge  has  been  used  in  a  similar  manner. 

When  the  water  is  not  perfectly  clean  and  free  from 
grease  or  soap. 

When  the  duster  has  been  used  for  dusting  paint,  and  is 
not  in  a  clean  condition. 

When  the  cups  are  besmeared  with  dried  or  gummy 
varnish,  or  not  otherwise  clean. 

When  the  brushes  are   not  kept   in  a  covered  brush* 


46       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

keeper,  or  are  suspended  in  liquid  other  than  varnish,  or 
are  dirty  around  the  binding  and  handle,  or  lousy. 

When  the  varnish  room  is  used  for  all  sorts  of  work, 
is  not  clean,  the  floor  wet,  the  room  not  kept  at  a  uni- 
form degree  of  heat,  and  is  not  free  from  everything  not 
necessary  in  varnishing  the  job. 

When  the  painter  has  undertaken  a  job  that  he  is  not 
competent  to  carry  through.  .    " 

When  the  varnish  is  not  perfect,  either  in  age  or 
manufacture,  or  of  the  quality  required  to  do  a  first-class 
job. 

TROUBLES  OF  THE  PAINTER. 

Many  are  greatly  troubled  at  times  with  their  paint  or 
varnish,  and  it  is  now  our  duty  to  enumerate  some  of  these 
annoyances,  and  to  explain  why  they  occur  and  how  to 
cure  them. 

SPECKY  VARNISHES. 

We  sometimes  have  a  job  that  looks  as  if  a  salt  sprinkler 
had  been  shaken  over  it  before  the  varnish  was  dry.  It  is 
full  of  little  specks.  Assured  that  there  was  no  dust  in  tbe 
room,  none  in  the  brushes  and  no  pumice-stone  on  the 
work,  where  shall  we  look  ?  Why,  at  your  varnish  !  It 
has  been  in  a  cold  or  damp  place  ;  the  can  was  kept  on  tho 
the  floor  (the  coldest  part  of  the  room),  and  the  varnish 
has  become  chilled,  which  has  caused  a  separation  of  the 
driers  from  the  oil,  and  the  result  is  "specks."  To  cure 
the  evil,  set  the  can  of  varnish  on  two  bricks  upon  the 
stove  and  warm  it  gradually  ;  don't  overheat  it  ;  then, 
always  keep  your  varnish  cans  on  a  shelf  up  over  the 
beater,  where  it  is  warm. 

CRAWLING  OF  PAINT  OR  VARNISH. 

When   the  paint  or  varnish  draws  up,  and  won't  staf 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         47 

where  it  is  put,  it  is  called  "  crawling."  This  may  occur  if 
the  under  coat  or  surface  is  too  glossy,  or  if  the  paint  has 
grown  fat  by  being  run  through  a  heated  mill  ;  or  if  the 
surface  be  chilled,  or  when  there  is  grease  or  soap  on  the 
surface. 

Varnish  is  liable  to  crawl  when  put  over  an  old  though 
well  rubbed  surface  of  English  varnish,  and  to  remedy  the 
evil,  first  apply  a  very  thin  coat  of  japan  and  turpentine 
equal  parts,  then  apply  the  varnish  over  that,  and  it  will 
not  crawl. 

To  prevent  paint  from  crawling,  wipe  the  surface  with 
a  damp  shammy,  or  better  wash  the  whole  job  and  shammy 
it  dry.  Crawling  on  lake  stripes  is  often  seen,  but  the 
damp  shammy  rubbed  over  it  will  generally  stop  it. 

BLISTERING. 

The  blistering  of  a  varnished  surface  after  the  varnish 
has  had  ample  time  to  dry  thoroughly,  is  we  believe,  due 
entirely  to  the  evaporation  of  moisture  which  lies  con- 
fined under  the  varnish.  We  never  see  blisters  occur  un- 
less there  is  excessive  heat  upon  the  surface,  and  heat 
causes  the  evaporation  of  the  confined  moisture,  which  in 
turn  raises  the  varnish,  which  has  become  soft  by  the  heat, 
into  puff-balls  and  blisters.  Much  of  this  is  due  to  un- 
seasoned wood,  and  much  more  to  moisture  sealed  up  in 
the  rough-stuff  coats.  The  water  used  in  rubbing  pene- 
trates the  porous  paint,  and  many  times,  the  job  being  in 
a  hurry,  a  coat  of  paint  is  put  over  it  before  the  moisture 
has  dried  out,  and  blistering  follows.  Boiled  oil  is  fre- 
quently the  cause  of  blisters,  for  that,  drying,  as  it  does, 
on  the  outside,  and  remaining  soft  underneath,  deceives 
the  painter,  and  other  coats  go  over  it.  drying  hard,  and 
when  a  hot  sun  strikes  the  job,  blisters  follow. 


4b        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 
CRACKING   OF  PAINT  AND    VARNISH. 

A  coat  of  paint  which  dries  quickly  and  hard,  put  over 
an  oily  paint  not  quite  hard,  will  cause  cracking.  It  may 
not  be  seen  until  long  after  the  job  is  finished,  and  it  may 
be  that  large  cracks  will  appear,  or  there  may  be  "  fire- 
checks  "  that  is,  thousands  of  exceedingly  fine  cracks  run- 
ning in  every  direction.  Almost  all  cracking  of  paint  or 
varnish  arises  from  this  carelessness  in  putting  one  coa't 
over  another  as  above  mentioned.  Again,  cracking  may 
follow  where  a  ready  prepared  paint  was  used,  which,  in 
order  to  cheapen  it,  was  well  dosed  by  the  paint  factor  with 
chemicals,  which  act  when  coming  in  contact  with  oil, 
and  form  soap,  which  will  never  dry  hard,  and  then  the 
subsequent  coats  will  open  out  into  cracks. 

TO   PAINT  CANVAS-TOP  SIDES. 

The  standing  sides  of  a  business  wagon  top  and  the  roof 
may  be  painted  in  an  excellent  manner  as  follows:  First, 
mix  some  rye  flour  paste,  the  same  as  that  used  for  paper- 
hanging,  and  give  the  canvas  a  good  coat  of  it  inside  and 
out.  Allow  plenty  of  time  for  drying;  then  with  new,  clean 
sandpaper  gently  rub  over  to  take  off  any  nibs,  etc.  Next, 
mix  white  lead  with  japan  and  a  little  oil,  say  one-third  as 
much  oil  as  japan,  thin  with  turpentine  and  give  three 
coats,  lightly  sandpapering  between  each  coat.  Finish 
with  white  color  and  varnish,  rub  off  with  pumice,  letter, 
etc.,  and  finish  with  body  finishing  varnish.  The  curtains 
should  not  be  prepared  with  paste,  but  may  be  tacked  up  to 
the  wall  and  receive  the  same  paint  as  is  put  on  the  sides 
and  roof.  They  require  to  be  flexible,  and  the  paste  would 
stiffen  them.  This  plan  saves  paint,  makes  a  smooth  job, 
and  a  durable  one  as  well 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.        49 
GLAZING  WITH  CARMINE. 

Carmine  gears  and  panels  have  frequently  to  be  made  in 
the  wagon  shop,  and  it  is  no  easy  task  even  for  the  ex- 
perienced painter  to  finish  such  work  without  clouds  or 
str3aks;  therefore  we  believe  the  inexperienced  may  need 
Rome  explanation  of  the  way  to  do  this  work. 

First  get  the  ground  solid  and  well-rubbed  out  of  color, 
and  varnish  (glazing  on  dead  color  seldom  makes  a  good 
job),  vermilion,  Indian  red,  or  whatever  the  shade  of  red, 
no  matter.  Then  crush  the  lumps  of  carmine  on  the  stone, 
mix  in  rubbing  varnish  and  grind  through  the  mill  the 
same  as  any  other  color,  being  sure  to  have  it  just  as  fine 
as  the  mill  can  make  it.  Next,  add  more  varnish  until  the 
color  or  glaze  is  not  too  strong.  Slow-drying,  rubbing  or  fin- 
ishing gear  varnish  is  best.  Now  dust  off  the  gear  or  the 
panel  nicely,  and  flow  on  a  good  heavy  coat;  if  a  wheel, 
io  only  two  or  three  spokes  at  a  time,  and  be  careful  not 
to  get  any  glazing  on  hub  or  rim;  continue  thus,  finishing 
the  rim  last.  Any  lap  you  make  will  be  seen,  so  don't 
make  any.  If  it  be  a  panel  that  you  are  working  on,  act 
with  the  glazing  the  same  as  if  it  was  a  finishing  coat  of 
clear  varnish. 

Some  attempt  to  flow  a  wheel  all  over,  and  then  ' '  lay  it 
off,"  but  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  they  "get  stuck;"  the 
safe  way  is  the  best.  Do  not  take  any  risks  with  carmine, 
for  it  is  an  expensive  color,  and  washing  off  a  clouded  job 
is  not  a  pleasant  task. 

On  cheap  work,  Munich  lake  may  be  substituted  for 
carmine,  an;7   but  few  can  tell  the  difference  when  the 
glazing  is  done  properly.     Glazing  should  be  saved,  i.  e. 
kept  in  a  well-stoppered  bottle,  and  it  may  be  used  for 
striping  or  for  the  next  job.     Don't  throw  it  away. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

WAGON   STRIPING. 

"  That  appears  easy  enough  !  *'  exclaimed  a  visitor  to  oui 
paint  shop  one  day,  while  looking  at  one  of  the  work- 
men engaged  in  striping  a  gear.  And  so  it  is — with  the 
proviso — if  you  know  how. 

Striping  is  an  art  acquired  only  by  long  practice  ;  one 
may  look  on  for  years,  and  then  not  be  able  to  draw  a 
straight  line.  Again,  many  suppose  that  to  stripe  well 
the  workman  must  have  a  very  steady  hand,  which  is 
true  only  in  part ;  a  steady  hand  or  quiet  nerve  is  certain- 
ly desirable,  but  it  is  not  that  only  ;  the  eye  must  do  its 
ehare  of  work,  and  the  larger  portion  falls  upon  it.  The 
eye  must  be  quicker  than  the  hand,  to  detect  any  varia- 
tion from  the  true  path,  and  then,  the  brain  telegraphs  to 
the  fingers  to  change  the  movement  before  a  mark  has 
been  made. 

The  mechanical  work  of  striping  may  be  easily  acquired; 
but  the  artistic  and  inventive  part  must  emanate  from  an 
inborn  taste,  or  in  short,  from  the  brain  of  a  •  natural 
genius."  We  might  go  on  indefinitely  and  illustrate  fancy 
striping  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  will  not  try  to  make 
their  own  designs  ;  but  we  do  not  care  to  do  so,  and  our 
aim  is  simply  to  show  the  general  style  of  wagon  striping, 
with  explanations  regarding  the  tools  and  materials  used, 
leaving  our  readers  to  take  their  cue  from  these  and 
then  invent  and  put  on  their  own  ideas  of  a  stripe.  We 
will  begin  with 


THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        51 
THE  STRIPER'S  KIT  OF  TOOLS. 

Striping  pencils  are  made  of  hair  fastened  into  var- 
ious sized  quills,  or  to  wood,  and  there  are  a  few  made 
with  a  tin  ferrule,  but  these  are  apt  to  cut  the  hair,  and 
consequently  they  soon  go  to  pieces  and  are  of  no  ac- 
count. Sable-hair  pencils  are  the  most  expensive,  ranging 
in  price  from  50  cts.  to  $8  each  ;  they  are  made  from  the 
hair  on  the  tip  of  the  tail  of  the  sable  martin  (an  animal 
of  the  weasel  family)  and  it  is  the  scarcity  of  the  hair 
which  creates  the  high  price. 

A  sable  pencil  for  fine  lines,  where  heavy  color  like 
white  lead  is  used,  is  excellent,  as  it  is  sufficiently  elas- 
tic to  hold  up  the  color  and  yet  make  a  clear,  full  stripe. 
There  are  two  kinds  of  sable  hair,  the  red  and  the  black, 
either  of  which  will  make  good  stripes  :  but  the  red  hair 
is  more  extensively  used  tor  artists'  pencils,  owing  to  its 
shortness,  being  seldom  over  three-quarters  of  an  inch  in 
length. 

Camel's-hair  pencils  are  made  in  the  same  manner,  i.  e., 
in  quills  and  fastened  to  wood.  The  hair  is  much  softer 
than  sable,  and  for  this  reason,  as  well  as  their  low  price, 
they  are  universally  preferred. 

STRIPING  PENCILS. 

Striping  pencils  are  made  in  many  sizes  and  designated 
bv  numbers  by  the  manufacturers,  from  No.  1  up  to  No.  12. 
The  broad  pencil  in  size  from  J£of  an  inch  upward  is  used 
for  stripes  of  any  size  above  %  of  an  inch  in  width  ;  but 
the  round  fine  lining  pencils  have  been  generally  super- 
seded by  what  is  known  as  the  "sword  pencil,"  or  "  dag- 
ger pencil,"    These  are  not  generally  for  sale  in  the  stores. 


52        THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

and  the  painter  must  make  them  to  suit  his  wants.  To  do 
this,  take  a  piece  of  hickory  or  other  strong  wood  and  cut  the 
handle  as  shown  in  the  accompanying  engraving,  Fig.  9, 
The  flattened  part  is  that  held  between  the  thumb  and  finger. 
Next  split  the  end,  and  put  a  pin  across  the  split  to  keep  it 
open  ;  then  take  from  a  large  pencil  a  small  bunch  of  hair, 
say  fifty  hairs,  and  dipping  the  butt  end  in  melted  glue,  lay 
them  carefully  in  the  split,  draw  out  the  pin,  when  the  parts 
will  close  together,  and  then  a  piece  of  thread  may  be  tied 
around  over  the  split  to  secure  it.  The  ends  of  the  hairs 
should  not  be  cut  if  it  can  by  any  means  be  avoided,  as  the 


Fig.  9. — "Dagger''''  Pencils. 


cutting  tends  to  destroy  the  softness  of  the  point.  In  our 
illustration  A  is  a  "  dagger  pencil "  when  dry,  and  B  is  the 
same  when  wet  with  paint. 

These  pencils  are  held  edgewise  to  the  work,  and  but 
one-half  the  length  of  hair  is  allowed  to  touch  the  surface. 
A  stripe  from  five  to  six  feet  in  length  may  be  drawn 
without  refilling  the  pencil,  the  large  quantity  of  hair 
acting  as  a  reservoir  for  the  paint ;  and  several  sizes  of 
lines  may  be  made  with  the  same  pencil  by  simply  regu- 
lating the  pressure  upon  it,  a  heavy  pressure  making  a 
heavy  stripe  and  a  light  one  a  finer  stripe.  The  painter 
may  easily  learn  to  do  this  by  practice,  although  beginners 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER.        53 

may  find  it  difficult  to  maintain  a  uniform  pressure,  and 
consequently  a  uniform  stripe  over  all  parts  of  the   work. 

The  hair  for  striping  pencils  should  be  at  least  two  and 
a  quarter  inches  long — if  too  long  the  hairs  will  droop  or 
sag  down,  and  if  too  short,  a  straight  line  cannot  be  made. 

Ox-hair  pencils,  also  used  in  striping,  are  made  from  the 
hair  which  grows  in  the  ear  of  the  animal,  and  these  are 
considered  excellent  for  striping  wagon  gears,  particularly 
where  heavy  color  is  used. 

Fig.  10  represents  the  striping  pencils  used  by  New  York 
painters. 


Fig.  10.— Striping  Pencils. 
The  proper  position  of  the  hand  while  striping  the  rim 
Of  a  wheel  is  shown  in  Fig.  11.  The  pencil  is  held  between 
the  thumb  and  fore-finger  and  the  other  fingers  act  as  a 
gauge  or  guide.  During  the  striping,  the  wheel  is  kept 
revolving  by  the  left  hand,  while  the  pencil  is  held  sta- 
tionary in  the  right  hand.  The  pencil  will  require  refilling 
frequently,  and  care  should  be  taken  that  this  is  done  uni- 
formly. 

ZINC  PALETTES. 

A  zinc  palette  is  said  to  be  the  best  for  working  or  thin- 
ning the  paint  upon,  as  it  is  so  easily  cleaned  after  its  use. 
Procure  a  piece  of  smooth  zinc  say  three  inches  wide  and 
nine  inches  long,  cut  the  ends  round,  and  make  a  hole  in 
one  end  by  which  to  hang  it  up  when  not  in  use.    The 


54        THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

pencil  is  first  dipped  into  the  paint  and  then  worked  out 
to  make  it  uniform  upon  the  zinc  palette.  To  extend  a 
stripe  where  the  paint  has  been  insufficient  in  the  first 
movement,  the  line  should  be  retraced  for  several  inches, 
or  the  connecting  stripe  will  be  smaller  or  not  so  well  cov- 
ered as  other  parts. 

Small  tin  cups  are  best  for  holding  the  striping  paint — 
blacking  boxes  or  lids  to  tin  boxes  may  be  used  to  advan- 


Fig.  11. — Showing  the  Position  of  the  Hand   in  Striping 
the  Rim  of  a  Wheel. 

tage — many  use  large  clam-shells,  and  we  believe  it  a  good 
plan,  as  when  they  are  gummed  up  with  old  paint  they  can 
be  thrown  away  with  no  loss. 

CARE  OF  PENCILS. 

Pencils  should  be  well  cared  for  after  use.  It  is  a  good 
plan  to  keep  them  in  a  small  wooden  box  with  a  lid  to  ex- 
clude dust,  and  supplied  with  a  piece  of  glass  upon  the 
bottom  on  which  to  spread  the  pencils.  They  should  be 
well  rinsed  in  turpentine  after  use,  then  greased  with  a 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.        55 

mixture  of  tallow  and  sweet  oil — which  does  not  harden 
in  cold  weather — and  nicely  straightened  out  and  stuck 
fast  to  the  glass,  the  broad  ones  on  one  side  and  grading 
the  sizes  down  to  the  hair  liners,  so  that  in  case  one  is  mis- 
sing from  its  place  it  can  readily  be  discovered,  and  so  that 
any  particular  size  can  be  taken  up  without  disturbing  the 
others.  When  a  pencil  gets  bent  or  crooked,  grease  it  and 
draw  the  hairs  between  the  finger  and  a  warm  iron. 

PENCILS  FOR  ORNAMENTAL  STRIPING. 

The  pencils  for  ornamental  striping  are  similar  to  those 
spoken  of,  but  the  hairs  are  shorter,  and  a  long  wooden 
handle  is  necessary.  The  hair  should  be  about  half  an  inch 
in  length,  and  we  have  always  given  preference  to  red 
sable  hair.  In  case  these  pencils  cannot  be  easily  procured, 
acamel's-hair  striper  may  be  cut  down  and  drawn  through 
a  fine  quill. 

COLORS  FOR  STRIPING. 

The  paint  or  "  striping  color  "  maybe  mixed  as  for  color 
on  bodies,  but  it  may  be  found  best  with  some  colors  to 
add  a  little  more  oil.  Tube  colors  are  preferred  by  some, 
but  we  do  not  agree  with  the  plan  of  using  them  for 
striping,  from  the  fact  that  they  are  all  "too  short."  i.  e., 
do  not  flow  as  nicely  from  the  pencil  as  home-made  colors 
do.  A  smart  rub  with  the  stone  and  muller  will  render 
any  of  the  ordinary  pigments  fine  enough. 


CHAPTER     VII. 


WAGON   STRIPING. 


Carriage  striping  and  wagon  striping  are  two  distinct 
branches  of  trade,  and  yet  he  who  can  do  the  one  well  will 
be  equally  successful  in  the  other,  by  which  we  mean,  it 
is  not  the  manipulation  of  the  tools  which  distinguishes 
one  from  the  other,  but  the  style,  the  position  of  the 
stripes,  and  the  colors.  Therefore,  when  once  the  carriage 
etriper  learns  where  and  how  to  place  his  stripes  on   a 


Fig.  12.     Showing  a  Striping  generally  used  on  Business 
Wagon   Gears. 

wagon  he  becomes  a  wagon  striper,  and  vice  versa.  The 
carriage  striper  has  certain  arbitrary  combinations  of 
striping,  each  having  a  name,  as  for  example  the  fol- 
lowing: 

"  Hair  line." 


"  Fine  line." 
"  Medium." 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND    WAGON  PAINTER.        51 

^^^^amm^m    ' '  stout  line. " 

"Round  line." 

' '  Heavy  round  line." 


"  Light  stripe." 
"  Narrow  stripe." 


' '  Medium  stripe. 


;  Heavy  stripe.' 


"  Broad  stripe." 


"Double  fine  line." 


Double  medium  line. 


'  Double  stout  line." 


58        THE   COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

"  Double  round  line." 


"  Double  ligbt  stripe." 


But  these  are  ignored  by  the  wagon  striper,  most  of  his 
work  being  that  known  as  "panel  striping"  on  gears  and 
fine  lining  on  bodies. 

The  stripes  generally  put  upon  business-wagon  gears  are 
a  three-sixteenth  of  an  inch  stripe  and  a  fine  line,  as  shown 
in  fig.  12. 

These  stripes  are  sometimes  put  on  plain  and  sometimes 
twisted  in  various  forms  to  give  variety  or  to  "fill  up" 
certain  parts  as  shown  in  Figs.  13  and  14. 

All  such  work  is  done  off-hand — that  is,  no  pattern  is 
used,  the  eye  alone  guiding  the  hand,  and  it  is  surprising, 
sometimes,  to  see  the  uniformity  given  to  wagon  stripes, 
when  it  is  remembered  that  not  even  a  mark  was 
made  to  insure  it.  There  is  as  much  necessity  for  prac- 
tice in  laying  out  the  striping  as  there  is  in  making  the 
stripe,  and  we  frequently  see  apprentice  boys  devoting 
all  their  spare   time  in  practice  at  such  work. 

In  Fig.  15  is  shown  a  panel  stripe  for  spring  bar  and 
like  pieces,  the  fine  line  being  generally  "put  in"  in  two 
colors,  as  for  example,  if  the  fine  line  be  white  on  a  dark 
ground,  the  feathering  and  dots  may  be  "put  in  "  with 
light  blue  or  red.  A  few  light  touches  with  the  striping 
pencil  will  often  add  to  the  appearance  of  a  job,  and  these 
should  never  be  begrudged. 

Fig.  16  shows  the  manner  of  striping  the  top  of  a  spring, 
the  broad  stripe  being  run  on  the  edge  of  the  leaves,  and 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  A1VD  "WAGON  PAINTKR.         59 

a  simple  straight  fine  line  finishing  it.     This  part  of  the 
gear  is  not  so  easily  seen  as  the  other  parts,  and  it  would 


Fig.    13. 


Fig.    14. 

Fig.  13.  Striping  for  Business   Wagon   Gears.     Fig.  14. 
Another  Method  of  Striping  Gears. 


60        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER. 

be  a  waste  of  time  to  elaborate  tbe  striping;  bcwever,  if 
other  parts  are  profusely  covered  with  fine  lines,  these 
places  should  at  least  approximate  thereto. 


Fig.  15. 


Fig.  16. 


Fig.  15.    Panel  Striping  for  Spring-bars.    Fig.  16.  Strip- 
ing the   Top  of  a  Sirring. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND    WAGON   PAINTER.        61 

Fig.  17  shows  the  back  end  of  the  shifts,  and  a  portion 
of  the  cross-bar,  giving  an  ilea  h  >w  a  stripe  may  be 
put  on  such  places. 


Fig.  17.  Showing  a    method  of    Strijring  the    Cross-bar 
and  back  end  of  the  Shaft. 


62       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  "WAG6N   PAINTER. 


BREAKING  LINES. 

Fig.  18  illustrates  what  is  known  as  a   "break"  in  a 
'  double  fine  line,"  and  is  used  to  break  the  monotony  of  a 
continuous  stripe.     It  is  useful  on 
body  bolts  or  name  panels  as  well 
as  on  gears. 

A   "POUNCE  BAG." 

Fig.  19  gives  a  general  idea  of 
the  finish  at  the  end  of  a  panel 
stripe.  Such  designs  require  pat- 
terns, and  to  make  them,  take  a 
piece  of  thin  tissue  paper  and  copy 
the  illustration,  or  draw  a  new  de- 
sign, then  perforate  the  paper  with 
a  needle  into  small  holes,  thus  : 


following  every  outline  of  the  de- 
sign ;  then  tie  up  in  a  piece  of  thin 
muslin  some  whiting  to  form  a 
1 '  pounce-bag. "  Lay  the  paper  pat- 
tern upon  the  desired  spot,  holding 
it  firmly,  or  fasten  it  with  tacks, 
and  rub  or  pounce  the  whiting 
from  the  bag  over  it.  The  whiting 
will  penetrate  the  holes  and  leave 
a  well-defined  outline  on  the  work, 
which  may  be  followed  with  the 
pencil  and  paint. 

Fig.  20  is  a  similar  design.  These 


Fiq.     18,    Showing 

" Break"    in    Strip-  come  under  the  head  of  flat  scroll- 
ing, ing,  of  which  more  anon. 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE   AND   WAGON    PAINTER.        63 

*t  is  the  usual  plan  with  ribbed  bodies  to  "  black  off  "  the 
ribs  on  all  work  painted  in  dark  colors,  such  as  green,  blue, 
brown,  etc.,  but  where  the  job  is  light,  as  vermilion, 
Paris  green,  cream  or  yellow,  the  contrast  would  be  too 
great,  and  therefore  the  ribs  are  striped  on   the  chamfers 


Fig.  19.—  Showing  a  Fig.  20. — Showing  an* 
~Finish  for  the  End  of  other  Style  of  Finish 
a  Panel  Stripe.  for  the  end  of  a  Panel 

Stripe. 

with  a  -fVinch  stripe  of  black,  thus   "lightening  up"  tht, 
appearance  of  the  job. 
Ornamental  corners  are  frequently  added,   and  particu- 


64       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON   PAINTER. 

larly  where  the  panels  are  striped;  but  striping  on  the 
panels  of  a  ribbed  job  is  very  seldom  seen,  and  then  on 
cheap  work  only. 

GOLD   STRIPING. 

Gold  striping  is  done  in  the  following  manner:  First, 
having  the  body  well  rubbed  out  of  color-and- varnish  with 
pulverized  pumice  stone  and  washed  clean,  it  is  necessary 
to  pounce  over  the  entire  panel  on  which  the  striping  L  to 
go,  with  the  whiting  pounce-bag.  This  leaves  a  thin  fi  m 
of  the  powder  on  the  surface  and  prevents  the  gold  leaf 
from  sticking  to  any  part  not  covered  with  gilding  size.* 

GILDING   SIZE. 

The  size  used  for  this  work  may  be  a  mixture  of  one 
part  finishing  varnish  and  two  parts  good  brown  japan. 

The  proportions  may  be  changed  to  suit  the  time  at 
disposal,  but  the  formula  given  will  make  a  size  which 
will  set  "tacky"  in  an  hour,  in  good  weather.  Avery 
little  turpentine  may  be  used  to  thin  the  size  upon  the 
palette,  and  care  must  be  taken  that  the  size  is  not  "  fat," 
leaving  heavy  edges  to  the  stripe. 

The  size  should  flow  down  smooth  and -even  in  all  parts, 
and  the  gold  leaf  should  not  be  laid  on  until  the  hand  can 
be  gently  passed  over  it  without  sticking — but  when  placed 
directly  upon   it  the  size  appears    "  tacky"  or  "  sticky." 

When  the  gilding  size  is  too  "  wet,"  the  gilding  will  be 
rough  ;  and  when  too  "  dry,"  the  gold  leaf  will  not  adhere 

*  We  use  the  word  "  gilding  size  "  to  distinguish  it  from  a  drier  or 
sort  of  japan  found  in  the  market  under  Che  name  of  "  gold-size,"  which 
is  not  intended,  nor  can  it  be  used  for  laying  gold  upon.  Many  are  led 
astray  by  the  name,  and  the  anathemas  heaped  upon  it  when  put  to 
use  as  a  gilding  size  are  often  heavy  enough  to  sink  it  to  oblivion— 
where  it  ought  to  be. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.        65 

to  it,  so  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  tliat  the  size  be  in 
proper  condition.  Gold  leaf  is  purchased  in  small  books 
of  25  leaves,  3^2  inches  square,  the  price  ranging  from 
30  to  50  cents  per  book.  There  are  three  grades,  viz. :  light, 
medium  and  deep ;  the  latter  generally  receiving  the 
preference. 

APPLYING  GOLD  LEAF. 

There  are  several  ways  of  applying  the  leaf  to  the  stripe, 
but  the  tools  used  by  the  frame  gilder  such  as  "tip" 
"cushion,"  "gold  knife,"  etc.,  should  find  no  resting  place 
in  the  wagon  shop;  there  is  no  need  of  them  except  when 
working  on  glass  or  in  gilding  scrolls  and  figures  carved 
in  wood  for  circus  or  band  chariots,  then  those  tools  may 
be  employed.  When  about  to  lay  a  gold  leaf  on  striping 
first  cut  the  back  of  the  book  with  a  sharp  knife,  or  with  a 
pair  of  shears,  so  that  each  leaf  is  separate,  then  lift  the 
first  leaf  and  laying  it  on  a  flat  surface  rub  it  gently  with  a 
piece  of  white  wax  or  better  still,  a  piece  of  paraffine  candle. 
This  slightly  greases  the  paper  and  if  it  be  replaced  upon  the 
gold  the  leaf  will  adhere  very  closely  to  it.  Next  lift  and 
grease  the  second,  and  so  on  until  the  whole  25  leaves  are 
done  ;  then  with  a  sharp  knife,  guided  by  a  straight-edge, 
cut  through  the  book,  making  strips  a  trifle  wider  than  the 
stripe  ;  the  gold  will  then  adhere  nicely  to  the  paper  and 
no  great  care  need  be  taken  in  handling  it. 

Now,  the  gilding  size  being  "  tacky,"  lift  one  of  the  strips 
of  paper  and  gold  and  carefully  place  the  geld  upon  the 
size  ;  gently  rub  the  finger  over  the  back  or  paper,  then 
take  the  paper  away  and  the  gold  will  be  found  nicely 
fastened  upon  the  gilding  size  ;  go  on  with  the  next  until 
the  size  is  covered,  take  up  any  loose  gold  with  the  tip  of 


&6        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

the  finger,  and  repair  any  broken  or  missed  places  ;   then 
wipe  over  gently  with  a  bunch  of  soft  cotton. 

Another  plan  is  to  dampen  the  paper  with  turpentine 
instead  of  using  wax  or  paraffine,  but  we  do  not  believe 
it  so  good  a  plan  as  the  one  just  described. 

GOLD  STRIPING. 

A  gilding  machine,  invented  by  George  W.  Langdon,  of 
Baraboo,  Wis.,  answers  a  very  good  purpose  where  much 
gold  striping  is  done.  It  consists  of  various-sized  wheels, 
having  rubber  rims,  fitted  to  an  adjustable  handle,  and  so 
arranged  that  the  wheels  may  be  readily  changed  for  any 
width  of  stripe.  To  use  it,  the  leaf  is  laid  upon  a  leather 
cushion  and  cut,  as  when  using  a  "  tip"  in  frame  gilding. 
The  wheel  is  now  rolled  over  the  cut  piece,  which  ad- 
heres to  the  rubber  tire,  and  then,  if  the  wheel  be  rolled  in 
like  manner  over  the  size,  the  gold  will  leave  the  rubber 
and  adhere  to  the  size.  One  single  straightforward  mo- 
tion will  distribute  the  leaf  upon  a  tacky  surface  or  stripe, 
leaving  nine  inches  of  gold  stripe  perfectly  laid.  Many 
lay  the  leaf  directly  from  the  book,  rolling  it  over  the 
gilding  size  as  desired  ;  but  this  must  be  left  for  experts, 
as  an  amateur  would  waste  a  large  share  of  gold  thereby. 

When  the  striping  is  finished  and  quite  dry,  the  job 
should  be  washed  with  soap  and  water  to  remove  any 
greasiness  or  paraffine,  which  would  cause  trouble  with  the 
varnish;  then  it  will  generally  be  found  best  to  run  a  fine 
line  of  white,  blue,  red  or  green  on  the  edge  of  the  gold 
to  straighten  out  any  defects.  A  red  fine  line  on  one  edge 
and  a  cream-colored  fine  line  on  the  other  will  look  well 
on  green  grounds. 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER.        67 

Gold  bronze  is  used  extensively  for  gilding  wagon  work, 
and  if  a  good  quality  of  bronze  be  purchased  some  excel- 
lent work  may  be  done  with  it.  The  preparation  of  the 
surface,  and  the  size  used,  are  the  same  as  for  gold  leaf, 
the  only  difference  being  that  bronze  is  a  fine  powder  in- 
stead of  leaf.  To  apply  the  bronze  take  a  piece  of  shammy, 
velvet  or  plush  and  tie  it  up  into  a  small  pad,  then  dipping 
it  into  the  bronze  gently  rub  it  over  the  work.  It  is  a  good 
plan  to  coat  the  stripe  of  bronze  over  with  French  shellac 
rarnish  before  laying  on  copal  varnish,  for  there  is  some- 
thing Like  an  acid  in  ordinary  varnish,  particularly  English 
varnish,  which  acts  on  the  bronze  and  bringing  a  sort  of 
verdigris  to  the  surface  causes  the  gold  to  darken.  The 
shellac  prevents  this. 

"GOLD  PAINT." 

There  is  what  is  called  "gold  paint"  in  market,  which  is 
extensively  used  for  striping,  but  it  is  simply  gold  bronze 
mixed  with  a  thin  japan,  and,  as  any  one  can  make  it  for 
himself,  it  should  be  left  to  school-boys  and  artistically 
inclined  females.  Silver  leaf  and  silver  bronze  are  seldom 
used,  owing  to  their  liability  to  change  color  and  become 
almost  dark  ;  but  a  substitute  can  now  be  found  in  deal- 
ers' stores  which  does  not  turn  color,  and  it  is  extensively 
used  on  street  cars.  Nickel  leaf  is  the  name  of  this  sub- 
stitute ;  it  comes  in  tissue  paper  book,  4J^  inches  square. 
"Dutch  metal"  is  only  fit  for  scene-painters'  use.  There 
are  also  various  colored  bronzes,  but  as  they  are  seldom 
Used  on  wagon  work,  we  will  pass  them  by. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

COLORS   EMPLOYED  ON   WAGONS. 

No.  1.  Rib  Body  Business  Wagon. — Body,  chrome 
green  or  milori  green ;  ribs  and  frame,  black,  striped  with 
fine  lines  of  white,  cream  color,  or  vermilion;  gears,  cream 
color,  striped  with  broad  linos,  from  Ts?  to  i|  inch  wide,  of 
blue,  dark  green,  or  black,  and  fine  lines  of  vermilion  or 
blue. 

No.  2.  Same  Style  of  Wagon. — Body,  Indian  red  glazed 
with  carmine;  black  frame,  striped  with  vermilion  or 
cream  color;  gears,  light  English  vermilion,  striped  ae 
above  with  black,  and  white  fine  lines. 

No.  3.  Same. — Body,  medium  chrome  yellow;  ribs 
striped  as  before  directed  (not  "  blacked  off  "),  fine  lines  of 
red  or  black;  gears,  light  English  vermilion,  striped  T3?  in. 
black,  and  fine  fines  of  white. 

No.  4. — Body,  deep  English  vermilion;  ribs  striped 
black,  and  fine  fines  of  white;  gears,  light  vermilion, 
striped  black  and  white. 

No.  5.  Delivery  Wagon. — Body  panels,  deep  carmine; 
belt  panel,  dark  green;  top,  black;  gears,  dark  green,  striped 
with  double  fine  line  of  gold,  either  leaf  or  bronze, 

No.  6.  Same. — Body  panels,  deep  olive  green;  belt  panel, 
carmine;  top,  black;  lettering,  gold;  gears,  light  vermil- 
ion glazed  with  carmine,  striped  with  black  and  fine  line 
of  gold. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        69 

No.  7.  Same. — Body  panels,  black;  moldings,  carmine; 
belt,  light  olive  green;  top  sides,  deep  carmine;  all  the  rest 
black;  gears,  dark  olive  green,  with  black  and  cream  fine 
lines. 

PAINTING  A  WHITE  JOB. 

It  is  a  well  known  fact  that  white  jobs,  such  as  circus 
wagons,  sleighs,  hearses,  etc.,  will  remain  white  and  wear 
better  if  the  surface  be  polished  or  rubbed  to  an  egg-shell 
gloss  instead  of  receiving  a  coat  of  clear  varnish.  To  do 
such  work,  bring  up  the  foundation  as  before  directed,  ex- 
cept that  in  using  lead  color,  pure  white  lead  be  substi- 
tuted, and  white  rough-stuff  also  takes  the  place  of  tbe 
slate-colored  or  dark  variety.  To  make  such  rough-stuff, 
take  dry  white  lead,  one  part;  pulverized  soapstone,  two 
parts;  ground  pumice  stone,  one  part;  and  mix  with 
brown  japan  and  turpentine;  then  add  a  gill  of  oil  to  each 
pint  of  paint. 

When  the  job  is  rubbed  out  of  rough-stuff  apply  two 
coats  of  pure  white  lead  as  color,  follow  this  with  color 
and  varnish  made  of  keg  lead  one  part,  zinc  white  one 
part  and  grind  in  rubbing  varnish.  "When  that  is  dry  and 
has  been  nicely  rubbed  with  pulverized  pumice  stone, 
apply  a  second  coat  of  color  and  varnish  made  in  the  same 
manner,  but  substituting  wearing  body  varnish  for  the 
rubbing.  When  this  coat  is  dry  give  the  work  a  gentle 
rub  with  pumice  stone  and  water  until  a  nice  egg-shell 
appearance  is  obtained,  wash  off,  and  put  on  the  striping, 
lettering  or  whatever  it  is,  and  then  pencil -varnish  the 
stripes  or  letters,  leaving  the  white  ground  untouched. 
This  will  give  a  beautiful  white,  and  a  better  job  than 
any  other  method  we  have  yet  discovered. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

WAGON     LETTERING. 

In  these  days  of  great  inventions,  when  we  can  pur- 
chase "lettering  ready  made,"  in  pasteboard  patterns 
nicely  cut  out,  templets  of  metal,  whereby  the  whole 
alphabet  may  be  marked  out,  and  finally  ingeniously 
contrived  transfers  or  decalcomania,  it  seems  almost  a 
waste  of  time  to  lay  out  directions  for  painting  letters 
with  a  pencil.  But  our  plan  would  be  incomplete  without 
a  chapter  on  the  laying  out  and  painting  of  letters  for 
wagons  and  cars.  It  was  at  one  time  the  wagon  letterers' 
good  fortune  to  possess  "an  occupation  and  a  name"  above 
that  of  the  sign  writer.  His  work  could  be  readily  dis- 
tinguished from  the  ordinary  letterer  or  sign  painter  by 
its  boldness  and  the  care  given  to  details,  particularly  in 
shading,  where  glazings  of  carmine  or  other  transparent  pig- 
ments gave  a  richness  and  finish  which  could  not  emanate 
from  the  hands  of  those  not  intimately  connected  with 
the  trade.  These  days  have  gone  by,  and  we  find  the  well 
known  and  approved  style  of  the  wagon  letterer  prostituted 
to  the  idiosyncrasies  of  house  and  sign  painters,  who  have 
migrated,  some  from  foreign  shores,  others  from  their 
regular  trade,  to  sweJl  the  ranks  as  professionals  (?)  in 
wagon  shops.  The  consequence  is,  that  instead  of  having 
&  few  standard  styles  of  letters  to  write  about,  we  might, 


TffjS  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER,         1{ 

to  cover  the  subject,  take  our  text  from  a  printer's  speci- 
men book,  so  varied  and  multitudinous  are  the  letters  now 
in  vogue. 

The  aim  of  the  wagon  letterer  should  be  to  make  his 
work  plain,  yet  bold  and  attractive,  for  the  words  he  puts 
upon  a  wagon  are  to  be  read  as  the  vehicle  is  in  motion, 
while  he  who  wishes  to  decipher  a  sign  may  pause  in  his  walk 
to  do  so.  Therefore,  fine  lines,  as  in  some  of  the  Roman 
letters,  and  all  fancifully-twisted  arabesques,  called 
letters,  are  out  of  place  on  the  sides  of  a  wagon. 

Tbe  standard  styles  of  the  wagon  letterer  are  the  Full 
Block,  round  and  octagon  ;  Half  Block,  round  and  oc- 
tagon ;  Solid  Block  and  Italic  ;  and  these,  extended  or 
condensed. 


Fig.  21. — Octagon  Full  Block  Letters. 

The  Full  Block  letter  partakes  much  of  the  character  of 
the  Roman  letter.  It  is  bold,  or  "heavy  on  the  face,"  and 
when  well  made  is  by  far  the  handsomest  one  on  the  list. 
This  style  of  letter  never  looks  well  condensed,  but  it  may 
be  extended  to  an  almost  unlimited  extent,  without  the 
loss  of  any  of  its  characteristics.  In  its  normal  condition 
the  Full  Block  occupies  nearly  a  square  space  (see  Fig, 


72       THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

21),  the  measurement  always  being  taken  from  the  outef 
edge  of  the  main  bars,  the  "spurs"  being  allowed  to  run 
over  at  will.  There  are  but  few  letters  of  the  alphabet 
which  fill  the  same  space,  and  when  an  attempt  is  made 


Fig.  22.— The  Full  Block  Round  Letter. 

to  form  the  letters  geometrically,  a  mechanical  rather  than 
an  artistic  appearance  is  given. 

An  octagon  Full  Block  letter  possesses  a  geometrical  equi- 
librium superior  to  the  Round  Letter,  but  the  latter  (Fig.  22) 


...X 


IS 


-/ J 


Fig.  23. — Showing  the  Method  of  Cutting  off  the  Corner  n 
of  Round  Letters. 

is  frequently  used  on  good  work  to  give  variety.  These 
letters  are  generally  made  with  the  lower  spurs  a  trifle 
heavier  than  the  upper  ones,  and  this  is  done  to  give  a 
more  solid  foundation,  although  the  difference  is  almost 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAflON  PAINTER.         73 

imperceptible — and  the  eye  is  deceived  as  it  is  when  look- 
ing at  the  letter  S,  which  is  much  larger  in  its  lower  circle 

than  the  upper  one — (see  fright,  and  V.  wrong  side  up). 

The  corners  are  cut  off  at  an  angle  a  very  little  less  than 
the  width  of  the  bars  of  the  letter,  (see  Fig.  23),  although 
in  the  extended  letter.  (Fig.  24)  the  corners  may  be  cut  off 
from  line  to  line. 

TJie  Bound  Full  Block,  as  before  said,  may  be  used  to 


Fig.  24. — Showing  how  the  Corners  are  Cut  off  Extended 
Letters. 


give  variety,  but  it  is  not  so  neat  a  letter  as  the  octagon. 
In  all  respects  this  letter  is  the  same  as  the  octagon  except 
in  the  formation  of  the  corners. 

The  Half  Block  letter  is  next  in  order.  This  letter  is  sim- 
ply the  "  gothic"  of  the  printer, with  a  few  alterations.  We 
show  in  Fig.  25  the  octagon  half  block,  which  is  one  of  the 
most  useful  letters  of  the  wagon  painter.  It  may  be  con- 
densed, but  its  extension  is  not  advised  beyond  a  small  limit. 
Fig.  26  shows  the  half  block  round  letter.  There  are  some 
peculiarities  about  the  half  block  style  of  letter  that  we  wish 
to  call  particular  attention  to.     First,  the  formation  of  the 


74        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

letter  M.     We  show  in  Figs.  27,  28  and  29  the  difference 
made  by  letterers,  Fig.  27  being  the  recognized  or  correct 


Fig.  25.— Octagon  Half  Block  Letters. 


Fig.  26.— Half  Block  Bound  Letters. 
one.    Again  in  Figs.  80,  31  and  32  the  letter  R,  round  half 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         75 

block,  is  shown  in  three  styles,  some  preferring  30,   others 
31,  while  32  is  a  showcard  writer's  letter. 


Fig.  27. — Shotting  the  Correct  Method  of  forming  the  Half 
Block  Letter  M. 

M 

Fig.  28.  Fig.  29. 

Showing  two  Incorrect  Methods  of  forming  the  Half  Block 

Letter  M. 

The  letter  G  has  its  crossbar  carried  across  as  shown  in 

RRR 

Fig.  30.  Fig.  31.  Fig.  32. 

Showing  the  Letter  R  in  Three  Styles. 


76        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

Fig.  33,  which  is  a  sign  writer's  style,  the  true  wagon  let- 
ter G  being  formed  as  shown  in  Fig.  34.  The  outline  letter 


Fig.  33.— A  Show  Card  Let-    Fig.  Si.— The  Letter  G  as 
ter  G.  Correctly     Formed      by 

Wagon  Letterers 


is  simply  a  letter  outlined  and  not  filled  in.     It  is  exten- 
sively used  on  the  sunk  bottoms  of  street  cars  and  omni- 


Fig.  35. — The  Outline  Letter. 


buses,  but  seldom  seen  in  other  places. 
Fig.  35  is  an  illustration  of  this  style  of  letter. 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         77 

The  square  block  letter  is  made  with  all  its  parts  alike  in 
width,  or  nearly  so.     We  show  in  Fig.  36  the  solid  block 

LACQUE 

Fig.  36. — Solid  Block  Letters, 
letter,  and  this  may  be  made  either  octagon  or  round.    It 
is  a  very  bold  letter,  borrowed  from  the  type-founder  who 

\iimii    ''iiiiiiiiii  ''Miiiiii1  WSf   Nmiiiiiit        ''iimiiiii   Bun     ''iiiiiu     \iiii  ''iiiiiiiiiu   'I|iii|I;Iiiiii 
Fig.  37. — Italic  Letters. 
calls  it  "Antique."    When  nicely  shaded  it  is  very  hand- 
some, and  is  extensively  used  in  New  York.    Italic  letters 


Fig.  38.— Another  Style  of  Italic  Letters. 
are  simply  letters  set  at  an  angle,  as  shown  in  Figs.  37  and 
38. 
The  printers  black  letter,  generally  called  by  the  letterer 

Jjftagmfiattt 

Fig.  89. — Printer's  Black  Letter  or  German  Text. 


18       *HE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

LONDON 

Fig.  Ad.— Ornamental  Letters. 

"  German  text"  we  show  in  Fig.  39.     This  letter  makes  a 
very  tasteful  line,  if  well  put  on,  and  may  often  be  seer. 

PICKED 

Fig.  41. — Another  Style  of  Ornamental  Letters. 

on  the  delivery  wagons  of  bon  ton  storekeepers. 

Ornamental  letters,  as  shown  in  Figs.  40  and  41,  look 
well  on  some  jobs ;  being  bold,  they  are  much  better 

LEVERS 

Fig.  42.— The  Tuscan  Full  Block  Letter. 

adapted  for  wagons  than  the  Roman  and  many  others  now 
used. 

The  Tuscan  full-block  letter,  shown  in  Fig.  42,  may  be 
used  in  place  of  the  ordinary  full-block,  and  particularly 
where  a  condensed  letter  is  desired. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


79 


It  is  a  singular  fact  that  almost  every  particular  city  has 
a  local  style  of  lettering,  both  for  wagons  and  signs.     Bos- 


Fig.  43. 


Fig.  44. 


Fig.  45. 
Tliree  Styles  of  Letters  used  by  the  Abbot  Downing    Co. 

ton  has  a  very  peculiar  style ;  Philadelphia  another  ; 
yet  they  all  appear  well  when  one  gets  accustomed  to 
them. 

The  Abbot  Downing  Co.,  of  Concord,  N.  H.,  introduced 
a  new  and  tasteful  style  of  lettering  for  express  wagons, 
which  we  show  in  Figs.  43,  44,  45. 


CHAPTER  X. 


Wagon  Lettering  Continued. 


THE  ROMAN  LETTER. 

The  Roman  letter  may  be  taken  as  the  standard  or  base  for 
all  other  alphabets.  It  is  used  more  extensively  now  than 
in  former  years  on  every  description  of  work,  but  it  is 
seldom  we  see  a  perfectly  formed  letter,  owing  in  a  great 
degree  to  carelessness  on  the  part  of  the  student  when  learn- 
ing its  peculiarities.    The  graceful  turn  of  the  letter  S,  the 


Fig.  4Q.—TJie  Modem  Old  Style  Letter. 

lower  limb  of  the  letter  R,  or  the  short  and  (&)  seem  to  be 
something  that  few  can  master,  and  for  that  reason  a  sort 
of  hybrid  letter  has  of  late  been  introduced,  in  which  the 
difficult  parts  may  be  said  to  be  avoided.  We  show  in  Fig.  46 
the  letters  R  and  E,  to  illustrate  the  points  spoket 
of.  As  will  be  seen,  the  letter  R  is  provided  with  a  straight 
limb  or  tail,  and  the  E  possesses  features  which  take  away 
the  uniformity  or  squareness  of  the  letter,  and  thus  the 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE   AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 


81 


necessity  of  reaching  a  high  standard  of  Roman  lettering 
is  obviated,  and  the  workman  is  enabled  to  palm  off  an 
abortion  and  call  it  perfection.  This  style  of  letter  is 
called  "  modern  old  style,"  and  its  introduction  may  be 
laid  directly  to  the  influx  of  second-rate  workmen. 

There  is  a  marked  difference  in  the  formation  of  the 
Roman  letter  in  different  cities.  To  clearly  show  this,  we 
present  the  New  York  Roman  letter  in  comparison  with 
the  Boston  Roman,  the  former  being  considered  by  the 
general  public  as  the  most  graceful  in  outline  and  correct 
in  principles.  These  letters  were  painted  in  black  and  then 
photo-engraved  to  the  size  here  shown  (Fig.47)  for  this  work. 


Fig.  47,—TJie  New  York  Roman  Letter. 


82       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


G  H 


Fig.  47. — Continued. 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.         83 


K 

MN 


Fig.  47.— Continued. 


84        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTEK. 


R 


U  V 


Fig.  47. — Continued. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        86 

wx 


Y 


& 


Fig.  47. — Continued, 


W       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 
THE  NEW  YORK  ROMAN  ITALIC. 

This  letter  is  one  quite  easily  made,  after  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  Roman  letter  has  been  gained,  for  it  is 
very  similar  in  construction.  It  is  extensively  used  on 
wagon  sides  to  give  variety  to  the  work,  and  it  certainly 
looks  well,  if  care  is  taken  to  make  the  slants  of  each  letter 
correctly.    In  Fig.  48  we  present  the  alphabet. 

ABC 
DEF 
GUI 

Fig.  48.— The  New  York  Roman  Italic  Letter. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        87 

J  KL 
MNO 

PQR 
S  TU 


Fig.  48.— Continued. 


88       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

V  wx 

Y  Z  & 

Fig.  48.— Continued. 
The  "Lower  Case"  letters  are  shown  in  Fig.  49. 

abcde 
fghifk 

Fig.  49.—  New  York  Roman  Italic,  Lower  Case. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        89 

lmnop 
qrstuv 


Fig.  49. — Continued. 

THE  BOSTON  ROMAN 

This  style,  as  shown  in  Fig.  50,  is  the  outgrowth  of  the 
work  of  artists  of  this  country  and  of  Europe  from  cen- 
tury to  century.  The  crude  characters  at  the  beginning, 
no  doubt,  would  not  for  a  moment  bear  comparison  with 
those  used  at  the  present  time.  The  letters  combine  the 
boldness  of  the  block  with  the  grace  and  symmetry  of  the 
script,  and  are  preferred  by  the  business  men  of  Boston 
to  any  other  style  of  letter  made,  although  the  Queen 
Anne  revivalists  have  played  sad  havoc  with  their  pet 
hobby. 


90        THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND    WAGON  PAINTER. 

AB 

CD 
EF 


Fig.  50.— Tlxe  Boston  Roman  Letter. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.        91 

GH 


KL 


Fig.  50.— Continued. 


92       THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

MN 


OP 
OR 


Fig.  50.— Continued. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIACJE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER.        93 


wx 


Fig.  50. — Continued. 


94        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

Y 

Fig.  50. — Continued. 

Among  a  dozen  first-Cxass  sign  writers  there  is  con- 
siderable difference  in  opinion  and  custom  as  to  minor 
points  in  the  construction  and  spacing  in  this  alphabet, 
especially  the  letters  B,  C,  P,  R  and  S,  and  letters  involv- 
ing like  curves  and  principles.  When  used  on  wagon,  car 
or  sign  work,  it  looks  best  in  gold  on  a  black  smalt 
ground. 

In  this  letter,  each,  with  a  lew  exceptions,  occupies  a 
square.  The  letters  C,  G,  O  and  Q  are  described  within 
a  perfect  circle,  although  the  minor  curves  must  be  drawn 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND    WAGON  PAINTER.        95 

free-hand,  observing  to  keep  the  proper  thickness,  which 
is  a  trifle  more  in  these  letters  than  in  the  heavy  perpendi- 
culars of  most  other  letters.  The  thickness,  according  to 
the  best  authorities  should  be  two-ninths  of  the  height, 
although  the  appearance  is  good  when  made  one-fifth. 
The  hair  lines  extend  right  and  left  from  the  grace  lines 
two-thirds  of  the  two-ninths,  and  the  grace  equal  in  width 
to  the  hair  line. 

Observe,  however,  that  the  hair  and  grace  lines  are  a 
trifle  shorter  above  the  centre  of  the  letter,  and  should  be 
made  one-sixteenth  of  two-ninths  the  thickness.  Also  notice 
that  the  lower  arms  of  the  B,  E,  S  and  Z  are  a  trifle  longer 
and  heavier  than  the  upper  ones,  which  serves  to  balance 
the  letters,  otherwise  they  would  appear  top-heavy.  Avoid 
spacing  this  letter  too  openly,  as  that  gives  a  scattered  ap- 
pearance. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

LAYING  OUT  WORK. 

In  laying  out  work  first  prepare  the  surface,  if  for  gold 
letters,  by  pouncing  the  panel  with  whiting,  dust  off 
nicely,  then  draw  the  lines  which  form  the  boundary  of 
the  letter  with  chalk. 

Taking  the  most  useful  letter  for  either  wagons  or  cars, 
and  one  quite  easily  made,  for  a  criterion,  i.  e.,   the  half- 


Fig.  51. — Showing  how  a  Half  Block  Letter  is  Designed. 

block  letter,  we  proceed  as  shown  in  Fig.  51,  by  first 
laying  out  the  top  and  bottom  lines,  then  divide  the  space 
between  them  into  five  spaces,  for  a  perfectly  formed 
letter  is  one-fifth  higher  than  wide.  By  this  plan  you  will 
make  six  horizontal  lines.  The  bars  of  a  letter  of  this  kind 
should  be  equal  to  one-fifth  its  height,  consequently,  we 
now  have  the  lines  for  the  top  bar,  the  bottom  bar,  and 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 


97 


the  middle  bar  of  the  letter.  We  next  divide  the  horizon- 
tal lines  by  perpendicular  ones,  forming  three  and  a  half 
squares,  and  this  gives  us  the  extreme  dimensions  of  the  oc- 
tagon block  B,  C,  D,  G,  H,  O,  P,  Q,  R,  S,  T,  U,  V,  Z,  &.  The 


Fig.  52. — Showing  how  an  Ellipse   is    Used  in  Making 
Round  Letters. 

round  block  letters  occupy  a  very  little  more  space,  say, 
one-quarter  of  a  square,  the  letters  E,  F,  J,  N  and  L  be- 
ing one-quarter  of  a  square  less  than  the  extreme 
boundary.  The  letter  I  is  simply  the  width  of  one  square. 
The  letter  W  extends  over  one  square,  making  it  occupy 
four  and  one-half  squares. 

In  Fig.  52  we  show  how  the  ellipse  is  used  in  making 
round  letters.  All  round  letters  are  governed  in  their  cir- 
cular parts  by  the  ellipse,  or  oval  as  it  is  more  frequently 
called,  and  to  illustrate  this  fart  we  present  here  in  Fig. 
53  the  alphabet  in  lower  case  letters  of  the  Gothic  Half 
Block  style. 


98        THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTE*, 


de 
gh 


Fig.  53. — Gothic  Half  Block  Letter,   Lower  Case, 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.    99 


mno 


Fig.  53. — Continued. 


100     THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


VW  X 


Fig.  53.— Continued. 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      101 

To  make  an  ellipse  will  now  occupy  our  attention. 

Supposing  the  line  of  letters  we  are  about  to  form  are 
five  inches  high,  we  must,  in  order  to  have  the  line  appear 
perfectly  straight,  or  the  letters  of  one  height,  make  all 
the  round  letters,  i.  e.,  C,  G,  O,  S,  Q,  to  extend  a  trifle 
above  and  below  the  lines,  say  one-eighth  of  an  inch,  as 
illustrated  in  Fig.  52,  otherwise  these  letters  would  appear 
smaller  than  the   others  in  the  line.     To  lay  out  such 


Fig.  54. — Showing  the  Manner  of  Drawing  the  Ellipse. 
letters  then,  using  an  ellipse,  we  cut  from  a  card  a  pattern 
after  it  has  been  drawn  in  the  following  manner  :  The  oval 
or  ellipse  must  be  a  very  little  over  five  inches  long,  and  a 
very  little  over  three  and  a  half  inches  wide.  First  draw  a 
horizontal  line  through  the  centre,  which  will  be  seen  in 
the  engraving,  Fig.  54,  marked  JV  N.  Then  across  its 
centre  draw  a  vertical  line  H  H.  Next  measure  from 
the  centre  one-half  the  desired  length  of  the  ellipse, 
i.    e.,    two    and     three-quarter     inches     each    way     or 


102     THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

line  N,  and  one  and  three-quarter  inches  on  line 
H,  which  gives  the  space  that  the  oval  or  ellipse  must 
fill.  Now  take  the  compasses  (or  dividers)  and  put" 
ting  one  leg  on  the  centre  M  place  the  other  leg  at  the 
point,  two  and  three-quarter  inches  off  on  line  X,  lift  the 
compasses,  being  careful  not  to  displace  them,  and  set  one 
leg  on  spot  H,  one  and  three-quarter  inches  from  centre, 
and  turn  the  other  leg  down  to  line  N,  which  it  will  strike- 
a  short  distance  inside  of  the  spot  N,  and  that  spot  is 
marked  O  in  the  engraving.  Then  turn  it  to  the  other 
side  of  centre  M,  and  mark  the  other  spot  O  on  line  N. 
Now  stick  a  pin  or  tack  into  the  spots  O  O  and  H,  and  tie 
a  piece  of  thread  around  the  three  pins.  Next,  remove 
the  pin  at  H,  and  put  in  its  place  a  pencil,  as  shown  in  the 
engraving,  and,  keeping  the  thread  taut,  move  the  pencil 
along.  You  will  find  that  the  string  directs  the  course  of 
the  pencil  point,  and  the  result  will  be  a  perfectly-drawn 
ellipse. 

The  ellipse  may  be  made  any  size  or  shape,  i.  c,  long 
and  narrow,  or  broad  and  short,  by  simply  laying  out  the 
measurements  on  the  lines  iTand  N.  For  instance,  if  we 
measure  twenty  inches  on  the  line  iVand  four  inches  on  the 
line  .ff  the  ellipse  will  be  long  and  slim,  but  nevertheless  a 
a  perfect  ellipse.  Having  drawn  the  ellipse,  lay  the  card 
upon  a  piece  of  glass,  and  with  a  sharp  knife,  cut  out  the 
pattern,  which  may  then  be  used  for  marking  out  the  round 
letters  C,  G,  D,  O,  Q,  S,  and  the  lower  part  of  the  letters  U 
and  J. 

The  card-board  ellipse  is  laid  upon  the  proper  place,  and 
the  pencil  is  passed  around  it,  then  the  points  as  in  C  and 


THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      103 

G  are  formed.  The  lower  end  of  the  letter  G,  i.  e.,  its 
cross-bar,  is  made  a  very  little  lower  than  the  middle  bar 
lines. 

A  small  ellipse  pattern  for  laying  out  the  lower  case  of 
the  alphabet,  shown  in  Fig.  53,  will  be  found  excellent, 
for  nearly  all  of  these  letters  are  based  upon  the  oval.  The 
lower  case  letters  are  made  3}.',   squares  of  the  capitals  in 

5320 

Fig.  55. — Showing  Four  Property  Balanced  Figures. 

height,  and  the  long  letters  such  as  b.  d,  f,  h,  k  and  1,  run 
up  to  the  full  five  square",  while  g  j,  p.  q,  and  y  run  below 
an  equal  distance,  making  either  letter  five  squares  in 
height. 

All  letters  should  have  a  perfect  balance,  that  is,  if  they 
were  cut  out  of  a  block  they  could  be  set  upon  their  bases. 
We  here  illustrate  a  few  figures  to  show  this  feature  (see  Fig. 
55)  as  well  as  to  illustrate  three  of  the  most  difficult  fig- 
ures to  make,  so  that  they  will  be  evenly  balanced,  name' 
ly,  5,  3  and  2. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


SHADING. 

Again  we  are  called  upon  to  deplore  the  inroads  made- 
by  sign  and  show  card  letterers.  It  was  formerly  the 
custom  to  shade  all  letters  on  the  right  side  and  bottom, 
except  in  the  case  of  the  sunk-bottom  of  cars,when  the  shade 
was  thrown  on  the  top  and  right  side.  But  now  we  see 
the  shade  frequently  put  upon  the  left  of  the  letter  (it  is 
easier  to  do,  they  say),  which  entirely  breaks  the   charac- 


Fig.  56. — Showing  an  Octagon  Half  Block  with  a  Single 
Shade  Blocked. 

teristic  of  the  wagon  letterer.  There  may  be  a  few  sign 
writers  who  can  letter  a.  wagon  according  to  rule,  but,  as  a 
general  thing,  their  work  falls  below  the  standard. 

We  show  in  Fig.  56  an  octagon  half -block  with  a  single 
shade,  blocked,  i,  e.,  made  darker  on  the  bottom  than  on 
the  sides.     This  may  be  done  by  shading  with  vermilion 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      105 

on  the  sides  and  ends,  then  glazing  the  bottom  with  car- 
mine. Fig.  57  shows  a  double  shade  blocked.  This  may 
be  done  by  shading  the  sides  vermilion,  the  bottom  Indian 
red,  and  then  running  on  the  second  shade  over  each, 
covering  one-half  the  width  with  carmine.  It  should  be 
remembered  that  the  darkest  shade  ahvays  comes  nearest 
the  letter.  On  gold  lettering  the  shade  always  touches  the 
edge  of  th?  gold,  but  in  paint  letters  a  space  is  left  between 
the  letter  and  shade,  see  Fig.  58.  The  shade  never  looks 
well  if  made  wider  than  the  bars  of  the  letter,  and  the 
angles  formed  by  the  end  of  the  shade  should  be  uniform, 
and  should  be  determined  by  the  angle  of  the  square — 
generally  forty-five  degrees.  However,  the  shade  is  some- 
times made  wider  on  the  bottom  than  on  the  sides,  and  then 
the  angle  will  be  inclined  more  nearly  to  a  perpendicular. 


Fig.  57.— Showing  a  Double  Shade  Blocked. 

Shading  should  be  done  in  the  same  manner  through- 
out a  piece  of  work  ;  that  is,  if  one  line  be  shaded  on  the 
right  side,  all  lines  on  the  job  must  be  done  so.  On  red 
grounds,  gold  letters  are  generally  shaded  with  black,  and 
then  the  double  shade  is  made  by  extending  the  width  of 


106     THE  COMPLETE  CARBIAGE    AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

the  shade,  by  running  a  carmine  glaze  outside  of  the  black. 
The  colors  employed  in  shading  should  harmonize  with 
the  colors  of  the  letter  and  of  the  groundwork.  Here  the 
taste  of  the  painter  is  called  into  play,  for  if  the  colors  are 
not  harmonious — no  matter  how  well  formed  the  letters 
may  be — the  result  will  not  be  satisfactory. 

Gold  letters  on  a  white  ground  may  be  shaded  with  any 
colors  excepting  those  of  a  yellow  hue — blue,  red  and' 
green  being  the  colors  most  frequently  used. 

Red  letters  look  well  shaded  with  lead  color  or  gray;  a 


Fig.  58. — Showing   the   Method   of  Shading    "Painted" 
Letters. 


light  green  will  also  be  a  complementary  shade  for  red,  on 
a  white  ground.  Black  letters  look  well  shaded  with  any 
of  the  primary  colors.  One  thing  should  ever  be  taken 
into  consideration,  the  most  intense  or  prominent  color 
should  be  put  on  the  letter,  and  not  the  shade.  When  a 
shade  has  been  put  on  a  letter,  and  a  disagreeable  result  is 
produced,  it  may  often  be  improved  by  adding  a  fine  line 
of  white  or  black  (according  to  the  ground)  between  the 
shade  and  letter.      All  gold  lettering  should  be  edged — 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      107 

called  "  the  lights" — on  the  opposite  edge  from  the  shade, 
or  in  some  cases  all  around  the  letter.  The  cast  shadow 
of  a  letter  is  in  reality  the  shade,  and  what  is  generally 
called  the  shade  is  the  "thickness"  or  "blocking."  This 
cast  shadow  is  seldom  added  except  on  white  grounds, 
when  a  faint  lead  color  or  French  gray  is  used. 

The  position  of  lines  should  receive  attention.  It  will 
not  look  well  to  have  two  circular  lines  follow  one  another. 
Curved  lines — as  the  line  of  beauty — are  often  thrown  in 
to  relieve  the  appearance  of  sameness.  All  short  or  unim- 
portant words,  such  as  "  and, '  "dealer  in,  "  "  in,"  "manu- 
facturer of,"  etc.,  should  be  placed  alone,  or  worked  into 
a  ribbon  or  scroll,  and  never  attached  to  the  end  of  a  long 
line  of  greater  importance. 

The  same  style  of  letter  should  not  be  employed  in  two 
adjacent  lines,  except  it  be  in  the  enumeration  of  a  list  of 
articles,  or  several  addresses.  Letters  belonging  to  differ- 
ent classes  or  styles  should  not  be  used  in  the  same  line, 
except  it  be  for  ornamental  purposes,  and  then  they  should 
be  used  sparingly. 

The  tools  used  by  the  letterer  may  be  counted  upon  the 
fingers.  The  pallette  and  rest-stick  are  so  well  known 
they  need  no  description,  and  then  there  are  the  straight- 
edge, rule,  compasses,  chalk  and  a  piece  of  string.  The 
pencils  should  be  of  black  sable-hair,  either  in  quills  or 
tin.  The  hair  should  be  about  one  inch  long.  The  pencil, 
when  dipped  in  turpentine  or  paint,  should  present  a  fine 
point,  and  when  spread  upon  the  work  should  assume  a 
6quare  or  flat  end,  that  corners  may  be  easily  formed. 

Camel's  hair  pencils  answer  a  very  good  purpose,  but  are 


108     THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON   PAINTER. 


pot  so  good  as  a  well  '  broke  in"  sable.  Fine  liners  may  be 
made  by  cutting  the  hair  from  a  large  pencil  and  fasten- 
ing it  in  a  small  quill. 

The  point  used  for  lettering  is  generally  oil-color,  that  is 
color  mixed  with  just  enough  oil  to  render  it  easy- work- 
ing. Tube  colors  are  not  suitable  for  lettering,  as  before 
explained  in  striping.  Quick  color  may  be  used  when  a 
job  is  hurried,   but  it  is  apt  to  show  laps  and  brush  marks. 

We  present  here,  in  Fig.  59,  some  illustrations  of  various 
methods  of  shading. 


\ ■...':  .■;■:  . 


Fig.  59. — Showing  Various  Methods  of  Shading  Letters. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      109 


Fig.  59. — Continued. 


110     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  "WAGON  PAINTER. 


Fig.  59.— Continued. 

The  operation  of  gilding  is  fully  explained  in  our 
chapter  on  scrolling,  and  needs  no  further  allusion  here, 
save  that  the  gold  is  generally  laid  on  directly  from  the 
book.  The  painter  takes  the  book  in  the  left  hand  and 
holding  it  near  the  job  lifts  the  paper  leaf,  then  with  the 
point  of  the  book  pointing  downward,  rolls  the  leaf  upon 
the  size,  a  very  easy  method  when  once  the  knack  is  ac- 
quired. 

This  brings  us  to  the  close  of  our  observations  on  letter- 
ing. 


CHAPTER  XITI. 

"WAGON  SCROLLING. 

Scrolling  is  an  art  acquired  by  but  a  few.  In  all  the 
great  city  of  New  York  those  who  can  design  and  paint  a 
Roman  scroll  for  wagons,  cars,  etc.,  may  be  counted  on  tba 
fingers  of  one  hand.  Scrolls  in  relief,  or  Roman  scrolls, 
require  close  study,  continued  practice,  and,  more  than  all, 
an  aptitude  for  such  work,  natural  or  inborn,  and  none 
may  know  whether  they  possess  this  faculty  until  they 
have  tried  and  tried  again,  following  perchance  such  direc- 
tions as  are  here  given,  or  those  found  in  other  works  of 
the  kind. 

The  student  need  not  expect  to  produce  at  first  an 
elaborate  piece  of  work;  he  must  be  content  to  begin  with 
the  rudiments — as  in  learning  music.  A  blackboard  will  be 
found  the  best  for  practice,  for  each  line  must  be  drawn 
with  a  free  hand.  No  means  for  measuring,  other  than 
the  eye,  should  be  employed,  and  he  must  not  be  dis- 
couraged if  he  is  forced  to  rub  out  and  try  again  a  hundred 
times  in  so  simple  a  task  as  the  drawing  of  a  circle.  This 
drawing  of  a  circle  is  in  fact  the  key  to  the  whole  art  of 
scrolling,  for  he  who  can,  with  a  free  hand,  draw  a 
nearly  perfect  circle,  will  be  able  to  form  any  "sweep" 
with  comparative  ease.  We  illustrate  here,  in  Fig.  60,  the 
first  lesson.  The  bine  of  beauty  comes  next.  This  is  as  shown 
in  Fig.  61,  simply  a  curved  line,  but  unless  the  curve  is 


112     THE   COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON   PAINTER. 

made  with  a  graceful  turn  it  does  not  possess  much  beauty, 
and,  therefore,  it  should  receive  extended  practice,  until 
it  can  be  drawn  correctly  the  first  time  in  every  case. 
The  next  in  order  is  the  formation  of  leafing,  giving  the 


Fig.  60. — T)xe  First  Lesson  in  Scrolling. 

appearance  of  a  "bend"  or  "  twist "  etc.  Arabesque  or 
engraved  pictures  not  expressly  designed  for  wagon 
scrolls  should  not  be  copied  for  this  work,  for  they  will  in- 


Fig.   61.— The  Line  of  Beauty. 

variably  be  found  too  fine  or  too  delicately  shaded  to  sup- 
ply the  want  of  a  wagon  painter. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE    AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      113 

Fig.  62  shows  the  leafing  of  a  scroll,  and  the  manner  of 
shading  to  give  the  appearance  of  a  bend  or  twist,  and  in 
this  lesson  the  student  will  find  employment  for  a  long 
period,  for  he  should  memorize  the  form,  and  every  line 
of  shade  so  that  without  a  copy  he  can  make  a  similar 
pattern.     Originality  of  design  is  of  importance,  and  it  is 


Fig.  62. — Showing  the  Leafing  of  a  Scroll  and  manner 
of  Shading  to  give  the  appearance  of  a  Bend  or 
Twist. 

that  which  gives  confidence  and  a  free  movement  of  the 
pencil,  for  while  the  copyist  pauses  to  examine  the  copy 
to  know  what  mark  to  make,  he  loses  the  ease  and  free- 
dom possessed  by  the  original  artist,  and  a  certain  crudity 
characterizes  his  production.  The  size  and  form  of  the 
panel  on  which  the  scroll  is  to  be  put  at  once  suggests  the 
form  of  the  scroll,  and  thus  a  certain  amount  of  originality 
will  always  be  demanded  from  the  scroller. 


114     THE   COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON   PAINTEB. 


Fig.  63.— .4  Shaded  Roman  Scroll. 


SHE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND   WAGON  PAINTER.      115 

The  flat  outline  of  a  Roman  scroll  presents  no  pleasing 
forni,  it  is  the  shade,  as  shown  in  Fig.  63,  which  gives  it 
effect.  The  shading  must  be  done  in  an  off-hand  manner, 
as  it  is  not  well  to  retouch  the  shading  color  when  once 
applied.  Some  work  done  in  color  may  be  an  exception 
to  this  rule,  but  in  shading  gold  a  retouch  of  the  shade 
would  be  plainly  seen,  and  would  mar  the  beauty  of  the 
work.     Asphaltum  is  used  as  the  shading  on  gold  and 


Fig.  64. — Scroll  or  Lettering  Pencils. 


it  "sets"  very  quickly.  To  put  on  a  scroll  in  gold: 
First,  lightly  sketch  the  design  with  chalk  upon  the 
pounced  panel,  then,  with  size  as  mixed  for  striping  (see 
Striping)  using  a  sable  lettering  pencil  as  shown  in  Fig. 
64,  lay  on  the  size,  covering  the  entire  surface  within 
the  outlines.  When  the  gilding  size  is  "  tacky ,"  lay  the 
gold  leaf  directly  from  the  book — no  waxing,  greasing,  or 
tip  is  necessary;  lightly  rub  over  with  a  bunch  of  soft  cot- 
ton. Allow  sufficient  time  for  the  size  to  become  hard, 
then  apply  a  coat  of  rubbing  varnish  over  the  gold  before 
shading.  This  gives  the  painter  a  chance  to  wipe  off  a 
shade  or  misplaced  line  in  shading,  and  it  also  prevents  the 
asphaltum  from  striking  through  or  into  the  gold  to  give 
a  muddy  appearance. 


116     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON   PAINTER. 

In  shading  mix  a  very  little  burnt  sienna  with  the 
asphaltum,  and  thin  with  brown  japan  and  turpentine, 
then  begin  on  the  tip  of  a  leaf,  moving  the  pencil  at  right 
angles  with  the  centre  line  of  the  leaf  and  in  a  circular 
manner  ;  continue  thus  until  the  broadest  part  of  the  leaf 
is  reached,  then  a  few  light  touches  will  blend  the  shade 
off  to  the  gold.  Go  all  over  the  design  in  this  manner, 
then  return  to  that  part  first  done  and  apply  a  second  coat 
of  shading  to  those  parts  requiring  to  be  dark,  and  some- 
times it  is  well  to  add  a  third  coat  to  very  dark  spots. 
When  the  shades  are  in,  the  lights  (which  cannot  be  shown 
in  the  engraving)  may  be  added.  The  lights  consist  of  fine 
white  or  cream  colored  lines,  put  on  to  show  where  the 
strongest  light  strikes  the  scroll.  It  will  be  well  for  the 
beginner  to  study  the  work  of  some  known  professional 
and  learn  where  the  lights  are  put,  as  it  is  impossible  for 
us  to  show  them  by  engravings,  or  to  explain  in  words 
their  location. 

Heraldic  devices,  such  as  spear-heads,  quiver  and  bow, 
lances,  or  the  heads  of  animals,  are  frequently  thrown  in 
to  improve  the  appearance  of  the  design,  and  we  often  see 
Scotch-plaid  striping  used  to  fill  open  spaces.  But  judg- 
ment must  be  exercised,  or  a  gingerbread  style  will  be  the 
result. 

We  might  add  just  here  a  few  additional  suggestions 
upon  designing  and  laying  out  scroll  patterns,  viz.:  All 
curves  should  be  made  with  an  easy,  graceful  sweep,  and 
harmony  must  be  carefully  attended  to ;  for  instance,  if 
the  design  be  intended  for  a  centre-piece,  circles  of  the 
largest  diameter  should  form  the  centre,   and  a  gradual 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON   PAINTER.      117 

diminution  of  curves  in  their  various  forms  be  made  to  ex- 
tend therefrom  until  the  end  or  apex  is  reached  on  either 
side.  A  corner  pattern  should  have  the  largest  circle  in 
the  extreme  corner.  Those  who  pay  particular  atten- 
tion to  scrolling,  wherever  seen,  will  readily  comprehend 
the  ideas  we  wish  to  convey. 

Again,  there  should  be  a  similarity  between  the  leaves 
of  a  scroll.  It  would  mar  the  appearance  of  the  work  if 
leaves  of  various  kinds  were  jumbled  together,  for,  not- 
withstanding variety  breaks  monotony,  the  variety  in  a 
scroll  design  should  be  made  by  the  various  positions  of 
the  same  kind  of  leaf.  The  parts  which  make  up  a  scroll 
pattern  should  be  connected,  or  at  Wst  touch  each  other, 
and  not  appear,  as  they  frequently  do,  as  if  flying  off  into 
space.  This  is  applicable  to  Roman  or  relief  scrolling  more 
particularly,  for  it  is  a  common  custom  in  flat  scrolling 
(our  next  subject)  to  make  many  unconnected  parts,  and 
in  stenciling  all  parts  have  to  be  disconnected  in  order  to 
form  bars  or  connecting  links  to  hold  the  parts  of  the  sten- 
cil together. 

Flat  Scrolls  next  demand  attention.  These  are  simi- 
lar to  those  commonly  employed  by  fresco  painters,  and 
do  not  require  the  study  which  Roman  or  relief  scrolls 
call  for.  However,  there  is  a  certain  amount  of  skill  re- 
quired in  order  to  form  pleasing  designs.  There  are  three 
ways  of  putting  on  flat  scrolls,  the  first  and  simplest  being 
in  plain  gold,  with  no  shades  or  lights;  the  second,  in 
various  colors,  and  the  third,  in  colors  and  gold,  but  still 
with  no  shading.  Flat  scrolls  are  never  shaded,  while  a 
scroll  in  relief  always  has  that  peculiarity.    The  striping 


118     THE   COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON   PAINTER. 

pencil  is  often  called  into  requisition  in  putting  on  flat 
scrolls,  and  he  who  can  execute  ornamental  striping  well, 
will  be  equally  proficient  in  this  line  of  scrolling,  as  it  is 
simply  ornamental  striping  enlarged  upon.  We  present 
here  in  Figs.  65,  66,  67  and  68  four  designs  for  flat  scrolls, 
without  further  remark,  referring  the  reader  for  additional 


FUj.   6.>. — Design  for  a  Flat  Scroll. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      119 


Fig.  66.— Design  for  a  Flat  Scroll. 


120     THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER, 

comments  on  this  subject  to  our  chapters  on  Ornamental 
Striping  and  on  Stenciling.     Of  the  latter  class  of  work 


Fig.  67. 


Fig.  68. 
Two  Designs  for  Flat  Scrolls. 


many  parts  of  flat  scrolls  may  be  made,  as  our  remarks 
under  that  head  will  show. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

STENCILING. 

There  are  many  parts  of  the  ornamental  work  on  wagons 
that  can  be  done  with  stencils,  and  much  of  the  ornamental 
striping  and  flat  scrolling  is  put  on  with  them.  We  show 
in  Figs.  69,  70,  71  and  72  the  general  idea  of  a  stencil.  To 
make  them  proceed  as  follows  : 

Take  a  sheet  of  well-calendered  writing  paper  and  fold  it 
across  the  centre,  then,  with  the  crease  thus  formed  for  a 
centre  of  the  design,  draw  on  one  side  of  the  fold  one-half 
of  the  pattern  with  a  soft  lead  pencil,  then  fold  the  sheet 
with  the  marks  inside  and  laying  it  on  a  smooth  surface 
rub  over  the  penciled  portion  with  any  smooth,  hard  sub- 
stance and  the  pencil  marks  will  be  transferred,   making 


A  Stencil  Design. 


122     THE  COMPLETE  CAKRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

"if 

Fig.  70. 


Fig.  71. 


• 


«X^ 


Fig.  72. 
T/iree  Stencil  Designs. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE   AND   WAGON   PAINTER.      123 

the  whole  pattern.  Next,  lay  the  paper  on  a  piece  of  glass 
and  with  a  very  sharp  knife  cut  out  the  different  parts,  be- 
ing particular  to  leave  bars  sufficient  to  hold  the  parts  to- 
gether. 

The  brushes  best  suited  for  small  stencils  of  this  kind  may 
be  purchased  at  the  paint  stores,  but  in  case  they  are  not 
'  easily  procured,  take  a  good-sized  camel's  hair  pencil  and 
cut  it  square  across  in  the  middle.  The  color  should 
be  mixed  very  stiff  in  japan,  with  but  little  turpentine 


Fig.  73. — Brush  used  in  Stenciling. 

added,  then,  dipping  the  pencil  into  the  paint,  rub  it  out 
well  on  a  board  or  piece  of  paste-board  to  even  the  color  in 
the  brush.  Then,  laying  the  stencil  on  the  desired  place, 
rub  the  brush  over  it  gently  so  as  not  to  tear  the  pattern. 
The  fronts  of  the  spokes  are  frequently  ornamented  by 
the  stencil  plan,  and  in  Fig.  72  we  show  a  design  for  that 
work.  Transfer  ornaments  are  extensively  used  on  wagon 
work,  and  in  some  cases  are  far  more  economical  than 
(hand-work,  particularly  on  spoke  faces,  and  on  beds,  bars, 
bead-block,  etc.,  of  the  gears. 


SUPPLEMENT. 


CARRIAGE  PAINTING  AND  VARNISHING. 

[The  seven  following  chapters  are  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  C. 
E,  Vader,  a  practical  carriage  painter  of  extended  experi- 
ence, and  originally  appeared  in  the  columns  of  the  Black- 
smith and  Wheelwright.  The  matter  has  been  carefully 
revised  by  Mr.  Vader  and  will  form  a  valuable  supplement 
to  Mr.  Schriber's  experience]: 


CHAPTER  I. 

A   GOOD   FOUNDATION. 

In  treating  the  subject  of  carriage  painting,  it  is  better 
to  begin  at  the  foundation,  and  consider  the  first  coats  that 
go  on  a  carriage.  Of  course,  this  is  an  old  story,  and  one 
that  has  been  talked  and  written  about  a  good  deal;  but 
there  are  many  painters  who  do  not  think  it  worth  while 
to  bestow  much  attention  on  this  portion  of  their  work, 
while  I  regard  it  as  very  important  to  have  the  foundation 
coats  well  laid  on. 

In  the  first  place,  to  make  paint  stick  to  wood  or  iron,  it 
must  be  elastic,  so  as  to  form,  as  it  were,  a  part  of  the 
article  to  which  it  is  to  be  applied;  and  to  be  elastic  it 
must  contain  a  sufficiency  of  oil. 

Now,  I  propose  to  give  you  my  method  of  painting  car- 
riages and  wagons,  so  that  paint  will  not  peel  or  chip  off. 

When  a  new  set  of  wheels  are  to  be  painted,  I  first  mix 
the  paint  with  oil,  and  then  add  a  little  japan,  the  propor- 
tion of  japan  being  greater  with  raw  than  with  boiled  oil. 
Raw  oil,  I  may  say  right  here,  is  always  purer  than  boiled. 
I  don't  always  use  lead,  as,  in  my  opinion,  other  pigments 
are  just  as  good,  or  better.  In  fact  I  can  never  see  much 
difference,  if  you  use  oil  enough  to  hold  it. 

If  the  wheels  or  carriage  are  to  be  ironed  within  five 
days,  I  put  in  a  few  drops  of  turpentine,  but  this  is  not 
necessary  if  they  are  to  stand  ten  days,  as  in  that  time  they 


128     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE    AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

will  be  in  pretty  fair  condition  to  sand-paper.  It  doesn't  make 
so  much  difference  in  sand-papering  this  coat,  as  we  usually 
take  it  nearly  all  off,  though  this  is  really  not  necessary, 
and  your  job  won't  be  much  better  for  it.  In  sand-paper- 
ing, you  should  be  careful  of  the  corners  of  spokes,  and  all 
other  corners.  Don't  touch  a  corner  if  you  can  help  it, 
and  to  avoid  this,  use  a  very  narrow  piece  of  sand-paper 
around  small  places. 

CHIPPING. 

If  the  paint  is  going  to  chip  at  all,  you  will  notice  it  first 
at  the  corners  of  the  spokes  ;  and  when  this  occurs,  there 
will  be  nothing  to  hold  the  turpentine  coats  to  the  bare 
places  on  the  wood,  and  unless  the  difficulty  is  remedied 
on  the  start,  the  water  will  get  on  the  wood  and  cause  it 
to  swell.  The  exposure  will  start  the  paint  over  the  ex- 
posed parts,  and  when,  on  drying,  the  spokes  shrink,  the 
difficulty  will  be  increased.  The  process  of  expansion  and 
contraction,  if  repeated  a  few  times,  will  cause  most  of  the 
paint  to  peel  off,  leaving  spokes  and  hub  nearly  bare.  If 
the  carriage  is  much  in  use,  paint  so  imperfectly  applied 
will  not  last  six  months. 

THE  SECOND  COAT. 

The  second  coat  should  be  looked  after  not  less  carefully 
than  the  first. 

I  grind  my  paint  in  oil,  and  afterward  put  in  about  two 
tablespoon fuls  of  good  japan  (not  japan  that  will  curdle)  to 
enough  paint  to  go  over  a  gear  and  wheels.  Then  I  pour 
in  a  little  turpentine  and  mix  it  very  nearly  thin  enough 
for  working     I  commence  on  this  cuat  with  the  thumb- 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      129 

nail  process,  i.  e.,  spread  a  little  paint  on  the  thumb  nail, 
and  blow  the  breath  on  it  for  a  moment  to  hasten  its  dry- 
ing. If  it  dries  glossy,  I  add  a  little  more  turpentine,  bo 
that  it  will  dry  with  little  more  than  an  egg-shell  gloss. 
When  there  is  plenty  of  time  for  drying,  say  six  or  eight 
days,  I  put  in  all  the  oil  I  possibly  can,  for  this  coat  goes 
on  the  bare  iron  usually,  and  that,  as  well  as  wood,  needs 
all  the  oil  it  can  get.  With  this  coat  I  use  a  1£  or  2  inch 
camel's  hair  brush. 

For  the  first  eight  or  ten  hours,  this  coat  will  look  pretty 
glossy,  the  evaporation  being  very  slow,  but  it  will  dry 
out  nicely  in  four  or  five  days  if  the  weather  is  favorable. 
It  needs  at  least  four  days  to  dry  properly.  If  the  job  has 
to  be  got  out  in  a  hurry,  I  put  in  more  turpentine  and  less 
oil.  I  hardly  know  which  looks  the  worst,  a  job  that  is 
full  of  cracks  or  one  that  is  badly  chipped ;  and  one  or  the 
other  of  these  evils  is  sure  to  be  the  result  if  you  don't  give 
each  coat  its  proper  time  to  dry. 

As  there  are  more  coats  to  go  on  the  body  of  a  carriage 
than  on  the  gearing,  you  can  easily  arrange  it  so  that 
the  gear  coats  wil1  have  more  time  to  dry,  and  this  will 
enable  you  to  use  more  oil,  which  will  make  your  paint 
tougher  and  more  elastic  just  where  you  want  it,  and,  as 
a  consequence,  not  likely  to  chip.  Such  a  job  will,  of 
course,  please  a  customer ;  and  when  a  customer  is 
pleased  the  builder  is  also  pleased,  and  it  is  a  source  of 
satisfaction  to  yourself.  Nothing  is  more  annoying  than 
to  have  a  job  turn  up  in  a  year  or  so  with  the  paint  crack- 
ing and  chipping  off,  and  the  customer  grumbling  about 
poor  work.     It  doesn't  help  you  much  in  such  cases  to  try 


130     THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

to  lay  the  fault  to  the  paint.  He  has  paid  you  for  good 
paint  and  good  work,  and  he  wants  them;  and  if  you  wish 
to  keep  your  customer,  there  is  no  way  out  of  the  diffi- 
culty but  to  do  the  job  over  again.  When  such  things 
occur,  you  often  wish  you  had  never  learned  anything 
about  painting,  but  had  turned  your  attention  to  farming 
or  almost  any  other  occupation.  I  have  been  through  all 
this,  and  know  just  what  it  is,  and  have  learned  by 
experience  how  such  things  can  be  avoided.  I  worked  at 
the  trade  with  a  man  who  called  himself  both  a  house  and 
carriage  painter,  but  he  knew  very  little  about  carriage 
painting.  I  first  turned  my  attention  to  carriage  painting 
some  years  ago,  when  I  had  nothing  else  to  do.  I  did  not 
succeed  very  well  on  the  start,  and  to  try  and  find  ways 
to  overcome  the  difficulties  I  met  with,  I  began  to  study 
books  on  painting.  The  information  thus  obtained  helped 
me  greatly. 

PUTTYING. 

While  my  second  coat  of  paint  is  drying,  say  two  days 
after  being  put  on,  I  putty  up  all  open-grained  places  and 
imperfections  on  gear  and  wheels.  Putty  for  this  purpose 
I  make  as  follows ; 

Two  parts  keg  lead,  one  part  dry  lead,  one  part  umber 
(the  object  of  which  is  to  color  the  putty)  or  two  parts  dry 
lead,  one  part  dry  whiting,  and  part  keg  lead.  These  I  mix 
with  japan  and  varnish,  equal  parts,  with  the  addition  of 
a  few  drops  of  oil.  The  oil  binds  the  putty  the  same  as  it 
does  paint.  Putty  should  be  put  on  so  it  will  stay,  or  you 
can't  have  good  work.  If  in  preparing  putty  for  open- 
grained  spokes  you  mix  it  as  many  do,  with  japan  and 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      131 

turpentine,  it  soon  becomes  chalky  and  flakes  off,  taking 
the  outside  coat  of  paint  with  it. 

In  putting  on  putty  I  always  plaster  it  on  smooth,  so  as 
to  avoid  the  necessity  of  sand-papering  after  it  is  dry. 

SAND-PAPERING. 

When  the  second  coat  has  stood  as  long  as  possible,  say 
four  days  at  least,  I  sand-paper  it  slightly  with  No.  2  paper, 
that  has  been  used  on  other  work,  and  has  been  worn  down 
nicely.  This  works  better  than  fine  new  sand-paper,  I 
think.  The  object  is  to  scratch  the  surface  of  this  coat  so 
as  to  give  the  one  that  follows  a  better  chance  to  take  hold 
firmly. 

LAST  COAT. 

In  mixing  the  third  and  last  coat  of  paint,  I  place  the 
pigments  in  the  mill  about  half  an  hour  before  grinding, 
and  pour  on  turpentine  and  let  them  stand.  When  ready, 
I  add  japan,  and  run  the  whole  through  in  a  stiff  mass, 
screwing  the  mill  pretty  tight,  so  as  to  grind  very  fine. 
By  allowing  the  pigments  to  stand  a  little  while  after 
pouring  on  the  turpentine,  it  soaks  into  and  softens  them, 
and  the  mass  can  be  ground  finer. 

After  grinding,  I  add  a  little  raw  oil,  then  thin  to  the 
proper  consistency  with  turpentine,  and  go  through  again 
with  the  thumb-nail  process  described  in  my  last,  so  as  to 
get  the  paint  into  the  condition  required  to  have  it  dry 
with  an  egg-shell  gloss. 

This  coat  should  be  laid  on  very  nice  and  smooth  with  a 
hair  brush  and  permitted  to  dry  two  or  three  days.  Then 
I  moss  it  off  so  as  to  remove  all  specks,  keeping  the  corners 


132     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

constantly  in  mind.      Curled  hair  or  moss  will  take  a 
corner  off  in  a  hurry  if  you  rub  too  hard. 

READY  FOR  GROUND  COLOR. 

The  job  is  now  ready  for  the  ground  color,  and  if  it  is  to 
be  black  I  use  lamp  black.  It  covers  the  best  and  is  a  non- 
absorbent.  This  should  also  be  mixed  so  as  to  produce  the 
egg-shell  gloss,  and  allow  two  days  for  drying. 

The  next  coat  is  the  color  proper.  I  use  the  ground 
ivory  black,  best  quality.  Take  out  the  required  amount 
of  black  in  a  clean  cup  and  mix  it  carefully  with  a  stick. 
The  sticks  I  prepare  on  purpose  for  mixing.  I  think  I  can 
mix  paint  better  with  one  of  these  prepared  sticks  than 
with  a  putty  knife,  as  they  fit  up  to  the  side  of  the  cup  and 
mash  the  colors  better. 

Turpentine  should  be  added  little  by  little  (not  poured  all 
in  at  once)  till  you  have  obtained  the  right  consistency. 
Then  add  raw  oil,  and  test  the  paint  on  your  thumb  nail  in 
order  to  be  sure  you  are  going  to  have  the  egg-shell  gloss 
when  dry. 

DRYING  DEAD. 

Many  painters  have  an  idea  that  these  coats  of  black 
should  contain  no  oil,  so  that  they  may  dry  dead.  I  was 
taught  to  put  on  color  in  this  way,  and  supposed  it  must  be 
put  on  so,  but  reading  up  on  the  subject  gave  me  some  new 
ideas.  I  commenced  experimenting  and  watching  not  only 
my  own  work  but  the  work  of  others,  and  found  a  great 
many  cases  of  color  chipping  off  from  the  last  coat  of  lead. 
I  soon  discovered  the  reason  of  this  and  will  explain  it. 
Take  some  color  mixed  with  turpentine  and  japan,  and  lay 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.       133 

it  on  a  piece  of  tin  or  anything  that  will  spring.  Let  it  dry, 
and  then  bend  the  tin  or  other  article  a  little,  and  the  paint 
will  crack  in  every  direction,  and  in  most  cases  will  fly 
nearly  all  off.  Now  add  some  oil,  and  paint  your  piece  of 
tin  and  you  can  scarcely  make  it  crack  by  bending.  The 
oil  toughens  the  paint  and  imparts  elasticity  to  it.  This 
illustration  makes  it  plain  why  paint  not  properly  mixed 
will  peel  off  a  carriage.  Very  many  parts  of  a  carriage 
will  spring  and  vibrate  sufficiently  to  destroy  paint  that  is 
hard  and  unyielding. 

With  this  last  coat  dry,  the  job  is  ready  for  the  varnish 
coats. 

THE  VARNISH  COATS. 

I  take  rubbing  varnish  and  add  drop  black  to  make  the 
varnish  black.  This  keeps  the  varnish  from  "  greening" 
the  paint  when  the  job  is  done.  I  take  the  black  from  the 
can  as  it  is  ground,  and  do  not  put  any  turpentine  in  to 
thin  it.  The  best  way  is  to  grind  dry  black  in  varnish.  If 
drop  black  is  ground  in  good  Japan,  it  will  mix  with  var- 
nish and  stand  better  without  cracking  than  if  ground  in 
poor  Japan.  Japan  or  turpentine  never  works  with  var- 
nish very  well  any  way.  I  always  use  a  badger  hair  brush 
in  varnishing,  but  some  prefer  bristle  and  fitch  to  wipe 
up  with.  I  flow  on  a  medium  heavy  coat,  dress  it,  and  lay 
it  on  as  smoothly  as  if  it  were  the  last  or  finishing  coat. 
This  coat  should  stand  at  least  two  days,  and  three  or  four 
will  be  much  better,  if  possible,  it  will  rub  so  much  nicer. 
I  rub  this  a  little  with  pulverized  pumice  stone  and  water, 
to  remove  gloss  and  specks.     These  specks  should  be  few 


134     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

and  scattering,  and  they  will  be  if  the  job  is  clean  and  the 
room  kept  clean.  In  my  estimation,  there  is  more  dirt  on 
a  job  when  the  varnishing  is  done  than  gets  on  afterward. 
If  the  job  is  not  a  very  particular  one,  I  simply  rub  it 
with  curled  hair.  After  being  rubbed  with  pumice  stone 
it  should  be  washed  very  clean,  and  the  next  coat  of  clear 
rubbing  varnish  laid  on.  This  should  also  be  put  on  very 
nicely  and  smoothly,  and  should  stand  three  or  four  days, 
if  possible,  before  rubbing  it  with  pumice  stone  and  water. 
(I  should  have  said  that  if  the  job  has  to  be  striped  it 
should  be  put  on  over  color  varnish.) 

the  finishing:  coat. 

Now  we  are  ready  for  the  finishing  coat.  I  use  a  good, 
first-class  grade  of  varnish  all  through,  and  always  of  one 
company's  make.  Then  I  know  how  long  it  takes  to  dry 
out  of  the  way  of  dust,  and  how  long  before  it  can  be  run 
out. 

The  job  should  have  a  good  cleaning  and  dusting  before 
attempting  to  varnish.  This  should  be  laid  on  quite  heavy, 
and  dressed  so  there  will  be  no  runs  or  sags  when  dry,  and 
then  our  job  will  be  completed. 

A  great  many  might  6ay  the  method  I  have  attempted  to 
describe  makes  a  job  too  long,  and  differ  with  me  in  the 
time  I  allow  for  drying.  Of  course  we  cannot  gi  /e  so  much 
time  for  every  job,  but  I  am  trying  to  give  my  plan  of  lay- 
ing out  a  job,  instead  of  letting  one  coat  stand  three  weeks 
and  then  putting  on  the  five  or  six  coats  in  a  week. 

PAINTING  BODIES. 

When  the  body  is  received  from  the  body  shop  it  should 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      185 

be  well  dusted  off  and  a  coat  of  lead  or  other  pigment 
mixed  with  raw  oil  and  japan  (one  part  japan  and  three 
parts  raw  oil)  applied  to  it.  Leave  the  inside  two 
or  three  days.  After  the  body  is  hung  up  (as  it 
should  be  before  it  is  rough-stuffed)  it  should  be 
sand-papered  down  smooth,  and  a  second  coat  of  lead 
laid  on,  mixed  with  the  pigment  ground  in  oil,  and  two 
tablespoonfuls  of  japan  added,  and  thinned  with  turpen- 
tine. Give  this  two  days  to  dry,  and  then  apply  a  coat 
with  less  oil  in  it.  In  twenty-four  hours  it  will  be  ready 
for  the  rough-stuff.  Nearly  every  painter  has  a  recipe  of 
his  own  for  this  paint,  but  mine  is  :  To  three  parts  filler 
add  one  part  keg  lead,  two  parts  of  japan,  two  parts  rub- 
bing varnish,  the  whole  run  through  the  mill  in  a  stiff 
mass,  and  afterwards  thinned  with  turpentine.  This 
should  be  laid  on  thin,  and  about  six  coats  altogether,  one 
each  day,  with  two  days  to  dry  and  rub  down. 

RUBBING. 

The  fine  finish  of  a  body  depends  a  great  deal  on  the 
rubbing,  and  it  should  be  rubbed  carefully,  and  not  left  to 
an  inexperienced  hand.  After  it  is  rubbed  it  should  stand 
twenty-four  hours  to  dry  out,  or  over  night  will  do  if  it  is 
drying  weather  or  the  room  is  warm.  I  mix  lamp  black 
for  ground  work  with  raw  oil  one  part,  japan  two  parts, 
run  through  the  mill  and  thinned  with  turpentine,  and  try 
it  on  the  thumb  nail  to  see  that  it  dries  with  a  gloss. 
Paint  has  to  be  oily  when  put  over  rough-stuff  to  dry  with 
an  eggshell  gloss,  as  the  rough-stuff  soaks  up  the  oil ;  and 
you  might  as  well  put  more  oil  in  this  coat  and  give  it 


136     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

more  time  to  dry  as  to  give  it  a  coat  of  oil  lead  before  you 
put  on  the  lamp  black,  I  think.  At  least,  I  like  to  see  it 
dry  with  a  little  gloss,  as  it  holds  out  the  varnish  coats 
better.  I  let  this  dry  two  days,  and  apply  a  coat  of  drop 
black  mixed  so  as  to  dry  with  a  subdued  gloss.  Give  this 
twelve  or  eighteen  hours  to  dry,  and  put  on  a  coat  of  color, 
varnish.  (I  prefer  black  varnish  to  color  varnish.)  Give 
this  two  days,  then  rub  lightly  with  pumice  stone  ;  stripe 
and  ornament,  and  apply  a  coat  of  clear  rubbing.  Give 
this  three  days  to  dry. 

This  varnish  does  not  need  so  much  rubbing  as  some  sup- 
pose. If  it  is  put  on  level  it  will  not  need  much  rubbing 
to  make  a  nice  finish.  Unless  this  is  a  very  nice  job  I  only 
put  on  two  coats  of  rubbing,  or  three  in  all.  After  this  is 
rubbed  I  apply  the  finishing  coat  immediately,  and  the  job 
is  done. 


CHAPTER  II. 

DUSTING  AND  CLEANING  WORK. 

Before  Applying  Painfor  Varnish. — There  is  perhaps  noth- 
ing more  annoying  to  the  carriage  painter  than  to  turn  out 
a  vehicle,  having  its  beautiful  surface  covered  with  specks 
or  dirt.  He  takes  great  care  with  all  his  work  up  to  the 
varnish  coats.  Then  comes  the  time  when  dust  will  show 
itself.  After  the  job  is  done,  and  set  up,  the  painter  will 
see  at  a  glance  how  much  dirt  or  dust  there  is  imbedded 
in  the  varnish,  and  will  say  to  himself  (sometimes  aloud  to 
others): 

"  I  don't  see  where  that  dirt  came  from  ?  I  had  a  clean 
cup,  and  my  brush  was  clean,  and  my  clothes  I  dusted  off 
as  well  as  the  job.  There  must  have  been  some  one  in  the 
room  after  I  left,  but  I  locked  the  door  and  had  the  key  in 
my  pocket.  Perhaps  there  was  dirt  in  the  varnish."  And 
he  will  fidget  and  wonder  where  the  dirt  came  from,  and 
will  perhaps  think  of  all  these  things.  But  he  doesn't  think 
enough  ;  he  doesn't  think  deep  enough.  He  lets  it  pass  this 
time  as  the  mischief  is  done,  and  he  has  not  time  to  let  it 
stand  ten  days  to  rub  down  and  apply  another  coat.  Prob- 
ably next  time  it  will  come  out  better. 

Now  you  painters  who  have  trouble  with  dirt  let  us  talk 
this  matter  over,  and  see  if  we  can't  find  out  where  the 
trouble  lays.    Go  back  to  the  first  coat  of  black  that  is  to 


138     THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER. 

go  on  a  body.  The  job  has  stood  twenty-foui  hours  after 
being  rubbed  out  of  rough  stuff.  The  surface  is  all  grit, 
you  can  tell  that  by  rubbing  yoaj-  hand  over  it.  You  take 
a  common  duster  and  go  over  it,  and  perhaps  think  it  is 
clean.  Pass  your  hand  over  it  again,  and,  if  you  watch 
close,  you  will  feel  a  fine  grit.  No  w  if  you  should  put  a 
coat  of  paint  over  this  as  it  is,  while  you  were  apply- 
ing the  paint  you  would  see  hundreds  of  little  fine 
specks.  The  more  you  brushed  and  worked  the  paint 
on  the  panels,  the  more  these  specks  would  show.  These 
minute  particles  are  rolled  over  and  over  in  the  paint,  and 
every  time  they  are  rolled  over  they  grow  larger,  and  what 
could  hardly  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye  at  first,  will  seem 
quite  large  when  your  paint  is  applied.  Now,  before  ap- 
plying your  paint,  you  should  take  a  very  fine  piece  of 
sand-paper  and  rub  the  surface  slightly,  and  dust  off  with  a 
common  duster.  Then  take  a  piece  of  curled  hair  (n<~.t  moss), 
and  dampen  it  in  varnish  (oil  will  do);  squeeze  it  out  so 
that  no  varnish  will  rub  off,  and  rub  this  over  your  work 
slightly.  Next  take  a  bristle  duster,  put  a  little  varnish  in 
the  palm  of  your  hand,  and  rub  the  ends  of  the  bristles  in 
the  varnish,  so  it  will  adhere.  Rub  this  duster  ever  the 
work  and  the  dirt  or  grit  will  adhere  to  it,  and  be  a'l  taken 
up  by  it.  Now  your  work  is  in  a  condition  to  app*y  the 
paint.  If  the  paint  is  the  least  bit  specky.  or  has  any  pieces 
of  skin  on  top,  it  should  be  strained  through  a  piece  of 
book-muslin  into  a  clean  cup  and  applied  with  a  clean 
brush.  One  more  important  thing  is  to  get  the  job  wh^re 
the  dust  will  not  be  settling  on  it  when  it  is  drying. 
The  next  coat  should  be  gone  through  with  almost"  in 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON   PAINTER.      139 

the  same  way.    At  least,  be  sure  there  is  no  dirt  on  the 
job  when  you  apply  the  paint. 

"When  the  first  coat  of  varnish  is  rubbed  with  pumice 
stone  it  is  very  difficult  to  get  it  all  out  of  corners  of 
moldings  and  such  places.  It  should  be  washed  out,  and 
water  run  into  these  places  freely,  and  with  a  sash-tool 
clean  out  all  the  stone  you  can,  and  wipe  dry.  When  the 
job  has  stood  ten  minutes,  look  around  the  corners  and 
you  will  discover  enough  stone  to  spoil  four  or  five  jobs.  I 
have  seen  painters  take  the  "  shammy"  and  run  one  corner 
of  it  into  these  places,  and  of  course  it  would  dampen  the 
stone,  and  give  the  work  the  appearance  of  being  clean, 
when  perhaps  hardly  a  particle  of  stone  had  been  removed. 
They  would  then  dust  off  with  a  common  duster,  without 
seeming  to  think  about  or  look  after  the  places  any  more, 
and  immediately  apply  the  varnish.  Of  course,  the  first 
time  the  brush  went  in  one  of  these  corners  it  would  take 
out  some  of  the  powdered  stone,  and  in  brushing  the 
varnish  they  would  scatter  these  fine  particles  in  all  direc- 
tions, and  when  rolled  in  varnish  several  times  over,  they 
will  look  five  times  as  large  as  they  really  are.  The  job 
would  have  very  much  the  appearance  of  having  been 
sprinkled  with  fine  pepper. 

PUTTING  UP  JOINTS. 

When  you  have  a  job  that  has  open  joints,  such  as  where 
the  seat  is  screwed  to  the  body,  these  joints  should  be 
puttied  up  so  they  will  be  smooth.  On  iron  seats,  around 
handles,  there  are  many  open  places.  If  these  are  puttied 
up  they  will  clean  very  easy.    When  the  job  has  stood  a 


140  THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

few  moments  after  rubbing,  take  a  common  duster  and 
dust  all  over — not  rubbing  too  hard  ;  now  go  over  again  in 
the  same  way.  If  you  have  a  magnifying  glass,  look  over 
the  work  and  see  if  you  discover  any  dirt.  In  nine  cases 
out  of  ten  it  will  look  as  if  it  had  not  been  dusted.  Now,  in 
[most  cases,  right  here  is  the  dirt  that  makes  your  job  look 
bad  when  finished.  Nearly  always  a  job  is  as  dirty  when 
you  get  done  varnishing  as  it  is  when  dry. 

Of  course,  there  are  cases  where  a  job  is  got  out  clean, 
and  dust  gets  on  it  while  drying,  from  the  wind  shaking 
the  shop,  or  something  of  this  kind.  Most  country  shops 
are  affected  by  wind,  and,  unless  the  room  is  very  tight, 
dust  will  sift  out.  One  thing  is  certain,  if  the  job  is  not 
clean,  it  is  impossible  to  get  a  clean  finish.  After  your  job 
has  been  dusted  with  a  common  duster,  take  another 
duster,  and  put  a  little  varnish  in  your  hand,  rub  the 
points  of  the  duster  with  it,  and  go  over  the  work  with 
this,  being  particular  about  the  corners  and  moldings. 
Then  have  a  2^-inch  flat  bristle  brush,  that  has  never  been 
in  paint,  and  rub  varnish  on  the  points  of  this,  and  you 
can  clean  your  job  perfectly.  Keep  this  brush  close  by 
you,  and  rub  it  over  a  panel  just  before  the  varnish.  Of 
course  it  requires  three  times  as  long  to  dust  and  get  a  job 
clean  as  it  does  to  lay  on  the  varnish. 

CLEANING  GEARS. 

In  cleaning  gears  considerable  pains  should  be  taken, 
although  dust  will  not  show  as  much  as  on  bodies  or  large 
surfaces,  a  flat  bristle  brush  should  be  used  after  the 
duster,  the  same  as  on  bodies ;  and  be  particular  to  go 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND   WAGON  PAINTER.      141 

around  clips  and  ends  of  the  springs.  Run  the  bristles  into 
every  little  place.  One  important  thing,  in  my  estimation, 
is  to  start  from  a  certain  place,  and  go  from  one  clip  to 
another.  Commence  at  one  end  of  a  spring  and  go  to  the 
other,  and  so  on  around,  and  then  you  will  know  when 
you  get  through,  and  that  every  spot  has  been  touched. 
System  is  as  important  in  carriage  painting  as  in  any  other 
line  of  business. 


CHAPTER  III. 

PAINTING  LUMBER  "WAGONS. 

The  woodwork  should  be  primed  before  it  is  ironed. 
When  this  has  been  done  give  the  wagon  a  slight  sanding 
with  No.  2  sand-paper.  Clean  the  grease  and  coal  cinders 
off  the  iron  parts.  Mix  lead  and  Indian  red,  employing 
two  parts  of  lead  and  one  part  of  Indian  red.  Thin  up 
with  turpentine  and  put  in  about  two  tablespoonfuls  of 
Japan  and  as  much  oil  in  a  quantity  sufficient  for  a 
wagon.  Apply  this  quite  heavy,  touching  every  part? 
using  a  good  bristle  brush.  It  is  seldom  that  lumber 
wagons  receive  two  coats  before  the  color  is  applied.  It 
makes  more  durable  work,  however,  to  put  on  two  coats 
of  the  paint  just  described.  Next  take  American  vermil- 
ion, deep  shade,  and  mix  it  with  Japan  and  oil,  using 
equal  parts,  to  a  stiff  mush.  Thin  this  with  turpentine. 
Take  one  part  whiting  in  bulk  to  two  parts  of  vermil ion. 
Mix  the  whiting  to  a  stiff  mush  with  oil  and  run  through 
the  mill.  Thin  up  and  mix  with  the  vermilion.  This  is 
an  important  matter  and  should  not  be  left  out,  as  the 
whiting  makes  vermilion  work  like  other  paint.  Ver- 
milion being  very  heavy,  it  settles  rapidly  and  settles  after 
being  put  on,  as  well  as  before,  and  thereby  makes  the 
work  look  spotted.  It  will  be  a  hard  task  for  one  not 
used   to  putting  on  this  paint    to  make  one  coat  cover 


THE  COMPLETE   CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.      143 

satisfactorily.    It  requires  to  be   worked  very  fast  and 
even.    The  paint  must  be  kept  even  in  thickness. 

STRIPING. 

The  day  succeeding  the  operations  just  described  the 
work  will  be  ready  to  stripe.  The  colors  for  this  should  be 
black  and  white,  or  instead  of  the  latter,  light  yellow. 
White  makes  the  red  show  off  to  the  best  advantage. 
Take  lamp  black  and  mix  with  japan  and  oil  in  equal 
parts.  Thin  up  with  turpentine.  Silver  or  flake  white  in 
tubes  is  best  for  the  white,  using  turpentine  as  a  dipper. 
This  stripe  will  dry  over  night. 

A   GOOD    COLOR. 

Straw  or  buff  is  a  popular  color  for  wagons.  It  is  easily 
worked  and  is  a  good  paint  to  wear.  It  may  be  made 
of  lead  and  ochre  and  shaded  to  suit.  Three  coats  make  a 
satisfactory  job.  Wagon  boxes  should  be  primed  with 
lead  and  a  little  lamp  black  before  being  ironed  ;  then 
given  a  good  sand-papering  with  No.  2  sand-paper.  Then 
apply  another  coat  of  lead  color.  The  best  color  for  boxes 
is  brown.  Green  has  been  used  to  a  considerable  extent, 
but  it  does  not  make  a  wagon  as  attractive  as  a  rich 
brown. 

Venetian  red  and  lamp  black  make  a  good  brown.  In- 
dian red  and  lamp  black  constitute  a  Little  richer  shade. 
If  the  very  best  shade  is  wanted  use  drop  black  and  Indian 
red.  Yellow  of  different  shades  and  English  vermilion 
make  the  most  showy  stripes  for  such  boxes.  Blue  and 
green  are  also  attractive. 


144     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 
READY  TO  VARNISH. 

At  this  stage  the  whole  wagon  is  ready  for  the  varnish 
which  should  be  a  good  article  of  coach  varnish.  Black, 
sticky  stuff  should  not  be  employed.  As  heavy  a  coat  as 
possible  should  be  put  on,  care  being  taken  to  wipe  out 
thoroughly  around  the  bolt  heads  and  around  the  irons, 
Lay  the  boards  flat  down  and  lay  on  the  varnish  heavy 
and  lay  off  cross- wise  of  boards,  then  set  them  off  on  horses 
flat  down.  Left  in  this  position  the  varnish  will  not 
run.  By  so  doing  a  heavier  coat  can  be  applied  than  oth- 
erwise. The  inside  of  the  boxes  should  be  painted  with 
Venetian  red  and  oil,  one  or  two  coats. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TOUCHING  UP  REPAIR  WORK. 

Blacksmiths  and  woodworkers  have  occasion  quite  often 
to  touch  up  their  repair  work  with  paint,  when  there  is 
not  time  for  the  job  to  be  finished  in  the  paint  shop.  Some 
men  have  paint  dishes  in  the  shop  to  use  themselves  as 
may  be  necessary,  while  in  other  shops  the  painters  attend 
to  these  things.  Very  often  this  takes  a  painter  away 
from  something  he  can't  leave  very  well,  while  some  of 
the  other  hands  could  have  done  it  while  he  was  coming 
down  stairs.  But  blacksmiths  and  woodworkers  generally 
daub  up  and  do  more  damage  than  good  in  their  attempts 
at  painting.  We  have  a  spoke  or  two  that  must  be  used 
immediately;  if  it  is  black  we  generally  put  on  black  var- 
nish, but  paint,  dark  lead  or  something  heavy  would  be 
much  better.  Black  varnish  will  come  off  gradually  and 
won't  keep  the  grain  from  raising;  of  course,  it  has  a  little 
shine,  but  you  can't  get  one  coat  on  very  well  without 
making  it  look  streaked.  So,  take  it  on  the  whole,  it  doesn't 
look  very  well  and  it  is  in  no  shape  to  paint  up  again. 

But  whatever  is  put  on  should  be  applied  properly;  if 
you  have  a  large  brush  and  the  paint  or  varnish  is 
old  and  sticky  and  you  daub  all  over,  it  looks  bad, 
besides  making  lots  of  work  for  the  painter  when  the 
job  comes  to  be  painted.  You  can't  get  this  stuff  off, 
even  ?  spot  of  it  when  it  gets  dry  without  the  use  of  a 


146     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

sharp  knife,  and  you  can  hardly  ever  succeed  in  pre* 
venting  a  spot  that  will  show  always.  The  paint  should 
be  mixed  with  oil,  japan  and  turpentine  in  equal  parts, 
or  keg  lead  and  lamp  black  mixed  with  japan  and 
turpentine.  It  should  be  mixed  up  once  a  week,  so  as  to 
be  fresh,  and  dry  quickly  and  web1.  Have  an  inch  and  a 
half  bristle  brush,  not  an  old  stick  of  a  thing,  but  a  good 
brush,  and  keep  it  soft  in  the  paint  or  water.  A  spoke  is 
about  the  worst  thing  to  get  around  without  touching  the 
hub  or  other  spokes,  but  take  a  brush  half  full  of  paint  and 
put  down  as  near  the  hub  as  possible,  and  then  tip  up  the 
brush  a  little  and  work  crosswise  of  the  spoke  and  you 
will  touch  all  bare  wood  without  getting  on  the  old  paint. 
If  you  should,  why  wipe  it  off  with  a  rag  or  finger.  Go 
around  the  butt  of  the  spoke  in  this  way,  then  at  the  fel- 
loe to  the  same,  cutting  close,  and  then  fill  in  between  hub 
and  felloe  and  smooth  up  nicely.  This  will,  perhaps,  take 
a  moment  longer  on  a  spoke,  but  it  will  be  enough  better 
to  pay. 

"When  a  smith  heats  an  iron  that  has  been  painted,  and 
doesn't  heat  the  whole  of  it,  the  paint  will  fry  up  black  a 
little  ways  and  cinders  will  stick.  These  should  be  filed 
or  sand-papered  off  and  dusted  or  rubbed  off  with  the  hand 
before  the  paint  is  applied.  If  you  will  only  take  a  little 
pains  and  work  slow  around  these  places  at  first  you  will 
soon  get  so  you  can  do  it  about  as  quick  as  if  you  were 
merely  daubing.  One  should  take  as  much  pains  in 
patching  up  a  job  as  he  would  in  making  a  new  article, 
but  there  are  not  many  who  do.  When  taking  off  clips  on 
irons  on  a  painted  job  the  paint  is  liable  to  break  up  away 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND    WAGON  PAINTER.      147 

from  the  clip.  Now  if  you  will  take  a  knife  with  a  sharp 
point  and  cut  around  the  clip  it  will  come  and  go  right 
back,  and  will  not  need  to  be  touched  up.  When  ham- 
mering or  pounding  on  a  painted  iron  or  surface,  take  a 
piece  of  harness  leather  and  hold  it  under  the  hammer;  re- 
member that  an  ounce  of  prevention  is  worth  a  pound  of 
cure. 


CHAPTER  V. 

HOW  TO  PAINT   A  CHEAP  JOB. 

Sometimes  we  want  to  paint  a  job  cheap,  or  not  lay  Out 
much  work  on  it.  Sometimes  blacksmiths  or  wagon- 
makers  want  to  do  a  job  themselves,  and  are  at  a  loss  to 
know  just  how  to  go  to  work  at  it.  I  will  give  my  way 
of  doing  such  work. 

PAINTING  AN  EXPRESS  WAGON. 

Let  us  suppose  that  we  are  going  to  paint  an  express 
wagon  or  a  spring  wagon  of  any  kind.  All  wood  work 
should  be  primed  with  keg  lead  or  any  pigment  ground  in 
oil.  Venetian  red,  Indian  red,  umber,  or  any  of  these  dry 
paints,  will  do.  After  taking  out  a  little  in  a  cup  (enough 
to  make  a  pint  when  mixed)  put  in  about  twro  tablespoon- 
fuls  of  japan  and  stir  with  a  stick  rounded  at  the  end  or 
made  oval  to  fit  the  side  of  the  cup.  Stir  this  until  all  the 
lumps  disappear;  then  add  about  as  much  turpentine  as 
japan,  thin  with  oil  and  try  on  wood.  Raw  oil  will  be 
best,  as  it  dries  quickest,  and  holds  better.  It  should  be 
thinned  until  it  will  streak  on  the  wood  with  the  brush. 
It  should  not  cover  thoroughly.  Above  all,  do  not  use  old 
paint  that  has  stood  around  in  dishes  and  become  fatty. 
Such  paint  should  be  used  only  on  the  inside  of  boxes  or 
bottoms.  After  the  wagon  is  ironed,  sand-paper  with  No. 
2  sand-paper.      That  which  has  been  used  by  the  wood* 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      149 

worker  is  best.  It  need  not  be  rubbed  too  mucb  ;  just 
enough  to  smooth  nicely.  The  body  will  need  more 
sand-papering  if  it  is  not  rough  stuffed.  Sand-paper 
down  so  the  first  coat  will  be  nearly  off,  as  this  fills 
the  grain  up. 

THE  GEAR  COAT. 

The  next  coat,  for  gear,  I  would  mix  in  this  wise:  Take 
out  lead  enough  for  a  pint  of  paint,  or  the  dish  nearly  a 
third  full.  Put  in  two  tablespoonfuls  of  best  japan  and  stir 
well.  Then  add  the  same  quantity  of  raw  oil  and  stir 
again.  Thin  with  turpentine.  It  should  not  have  much,  as 
in  sanding  many  places  are  left  bare,  and  it  should  be  elas- 
tic so  it  will  stick  well.  This  should  be  applied  with  an 
inch  and  a  half  camel's  hair  brush.  It  can  be  done  with  a 
bristle  brush,  but  a  camel's  hair  costs  no  more,  and  the 
paint  can  be  spread  more  evenly,  and  it  will  go  farther  and 
can  be  thinned  more.  It  should  be  made  as  thin  as  possible 
and  cover  good. 

PAINT  FOR  BODY. 
The  paint  for  the  body  will  need  no  oil,  as  there  is  enough 
in  keg  lead  to  bind  it.  The  body  will  not  receive  so  many 
jars  as  the  gearing.  About  the  same  amount  of  japan 
should  be  put  in  and  thinned  with  turpentine.  All  screw 
and  nail  holes  should  be  puttied  a  day  or  two  before  you 
are  to  paint,  or  it  can  be  done  the  next  day  after  the  prim- 
ing is  put  on.  The  putty  make  with  dry  lead,  whiting  and 
Venetian  red  or  umber,  equal  parts,  mixed  with  japan  and 
varnish  and  a  little  turpentine.  A  better  finish  can  be  ob- 
tained by  plastering  the  body  all  over  with  this  putty, 
made  thin.    It  can  be  put  on  with  an  old  plane  iron  if  you 


150     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

have  no  plaster  knife.    This  paint  should  be  applied  with  a 
camel's  hair  brush  if  possible. 

It  can  be  put  on  with  the  one  you  paint  gears  with,  but 
a  two-inch  brush  would  he  much  better  and  enable  you  to 
work  faster.  If  the  body  is  plastered,  this  coat  should  be 
put  over  the  putty  coat  after  being  sand-papered.  Now  it 
is  all  ready  for  the  ground,  when  it  is  well  dried.  If  some 
colors  are  used  on  the  gear,  bike  Indian  red,  or  light  brown 
made  with  Indian  red  and  lampblack,  Portland  umber 
and  che  like,  there  will  be  no  particular  necessity  for  hav- 
ing a  ground,  as  these  are  very  strong  and  will  cover  solid 
over  almost  any  priming  coats.  But  it  is  a  good  plan 
to  govern  the  priming  according  to  the  color  the 
gear  is  to  be  painted.  Portland  umber,  or  stone  color,  can 
be  made  of  ochre  and  umber,  toned  to  suit  the  taste,  or 
ochre,  Venetian  red  and  black.  These  should  be  ground  in 
japan  and  oil,  equal  parts.  They  can  be  obtained  already 
ground  in  oil ;  then  japan  should  be  added,  thin  with  tur- 
pentine, and  apply  with  the  brush  used  in  first  coats,  pro- 
vided you  have  Dut  one  camel's  hair  brush  ;  wash  in  tur- 
pentine and  rub  well  into  the  color. 

PAINTING  THE  BODY. 

The  body  will  look  best  painted  a  dark  brown,  made  of 
Indian  red  and  drop  black.  A  man  accustomed  to  laying 
paint  would  make  one  coat  over,  but  an  inexperienced 
hand  would  do  best  to  put  on  two  coats,  one  in  the  morn- 
ing and  one  at  night ;  or,  if  there  is  plenty  of  time,  give  a 
day  to  each  coat.  This  will  only  need  a  little  oil  to  bind 
it.    The  body  will  need  two  coats  of  varnish,  the  first  put 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.      151 

va.  after  the  color  is  dry.    It  can  be  striped  and  orna- 
mented the  next  day. 

The  gear  will  do  with  one  coat  of  varnish,  so  it  should 
be  striped  over  the  color,  and  will  now  be  ready  for  the 
finishing  coat  of  varnish,  which  should  be  laid  on  quite 
heavy.  It  should  be  varnished  with  a  pretty  good  var- 
nish. Coach  varnish  will  hardly  do,  as  it  does  not  wear 
long  enough  and  cracks  quickly.  Good,  reliable  varnish 
can  be  obtained  at  almost  any  hardware  store.  It  will 
cost  a  little  more  than  common  vamish,  but  is  cheaper  in 
the  end. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HOW  TO  RE  VARNISH  A  CARRIAGE. 

After  the  carriage  has  been  well  washed  from  dirt, 
unhang  the  body  and  give  it  another  thorough  washing. 
Let  the  body  dry  for  twenty-four  hours.  Give  the  gear  a 
thorough  washing,  and  rub  it  down  with  ground  pumice 
stone.  By  this  means  all  grease  and  specks,  wlrich  would 
otherwise  remain,  will  be  removed.  This  treatment  of  the 
gear  is  a  very  particular  job.  The  rubbing  should  be  care- 
fully watched.  After  a  wheel  or  part  of  the  gear  has  been 
rubbed,  it  should  be  washed,  in  order  that  the  pumice 
stone  may  not  adhere  to  it.  The  pumice  stone  should 
never  be  allowed  to  dry  upon  the  work.  Give  all  the  parts 
a  good  washing,  and  clean  well  in  the  corners  with  a  sash 
tool.  Wipe  dry  with  a  chamois  skin.  After  all  the  parts 
have  been  thus  gone  over,  set  aside  twenty-four  hours  to 
dry.  I  think  it  a  good  plan  at  the  outset,  if  there  is  no 
mud  on  the  carriage,  to  dust  off  and  apply  paint  to  the 
bare  places  before  washing.  This  will  prevent  the 
moisture  penetrating  the  wood  to  a  great  extent  during  the 
washing. 

All  bare  places  should  be  painted  with  lead,  or  some 
other  heavy  paint.  They  require  two  or  three  coats,  in 
order  to  bring  them  up  to  a  good  surface.  At  least  one 
coat  will  be  necessary  on  small  bare  places.  Otherwise  the 
color  will  not  stick. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      153 

After  the  lead  is  dry  the  touching  begins.  This  is  no 
easy  job,  and  accordingly  it  should  not  be  left  to  an  inex- 
perienced person.  If  the  job  is  not  black,  the  first  thing 
necessary  to  be  done  is  to  match  the  color.  This  is  some- 
times quite  a  trying  task.  In  some  instances  it  is  found 
impossible  to  match  the  color  exactly.  This  is  frequently 
the  case  where  such  colors  as  lake,  red,  or  blue  have  been 
used,  and  have  faded  while  in  use.  In  such  cases  there  is 
no  better  way  to  do  than  to  come  as  near  as  possible  to  the 
color  and  let  it  go  at  tliat.  A  job  originally  painted  black 
will  turn  green  after  a  year  or  more  exposure,  or  at  least 
will  manifest  a  greenish  hue.  In  such  cases  the  touches 
should  be  as  small  as  possible,  so  that  they  will  not  be  too 
prominent  when  the  job  is  finished. 

In  touching  up  the  body,  if  there  are  moldings  or  beads, 
they  should  be  gone  around  with  a  small  brush  of  color  to 
set  the  dirt  in  places  where  it  is  hard  to  get  out.  A  body 
in  most  places  requires  two  coats  of  varnish,  for  the  reason 
that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  varnish  a  body  over  once 
without  the  dirt  coming  out  in  the  varnish.  Whatever 
care  may  be  taken  in  the  preliminary  cleaning  there  will 
always  be  this  trouble  to  meet.  In  two-coat  work  the 
first  coat  may  be  rubbed  down  with  stone,  and  by  this 
means  the  dirt  rubbed  away.  Upon  this  foundation  there 
will  be  no  difficulty  in  finishing,  if  the  final  coat  is  put  on 
nicely. 

There  is  something  about  touching  up  and  re-varnishing 
a  carriage  from  which  every  painter  shrinks.  He  dislikes 
to  engage  in  such  work,  for  it  is  practically  impossible  to 
make  it  look  as  good  as  new.    Frequently  the  owner  is 


154     THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

not  satisfied,  believing  it  might  have  been  done  better. 
Unless  a  carriage  is  in  very  good  condition  and  not 
much  faded  it  should  be  repainted,  even  if  but  one  coat 
of  color  varnish  is  applied,  and  one  coat  of  varnish  to 
finish. 


CHAPTER  VIL 
[The  matter  forming  this  chapter  was  written   by  Mr. 
Petersen,  and  originally  appeared  in  the  French  journal 
Le  Peintre  en  Voiture.] 

FORMS  AND   COLORS  IN  THE  PAINTING  OF  VEHICLES. 

A  correct  appreciation  of  the  relations  which  exist  be- 
tween form  and  color  is  a  qualification  much  needed  by  a 
painter  of  vehicles. 

He  should  clearly  understand  that  color  must  invariably 
be  subordinate  to  form.  There  are  some  forms  which  will 
fail  to  display  all  the  beauty  inherent  in  them  unless  they 
have  the  accompaniment  of  brilliant  coloring.  The  angular 
or  regular  forms  are  examples  of  this  law. 

Then  there  are  other  forms  which  appear  best  in  faint  or 
subdued  colors. 

The  only  regular  form  which  is  found  in  the  human  body 
is  the  circle  of  the  eye,  and  that  is  the  only  part  to  which 
nature  ever  imparts  a  brilliant  color. 

The  savage  with  his  body  painted  red,  yellow  or  blue  is 
hideous,  but  the  wing  of  the  butterfly,  the  plumage  of  the 
humming  bird  are  beautiful. 

Even  among  the  flowers,  those  possessing  regular  forms 
are  always  the  most  brilliant  colored,  and  as  the  forms 
depart  from  regularity  so  the  colors  become  delicate  or 
subdued. 


156     THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 
BRIGHT  COLORS  FOR  BUGGIES  AND  DOG-CARTS. 

The  buggy  and  dog-cart  appear  best  when  painted  in 
bright  colors,  but  cabriolets  and  mail  coaches  require  dark 
or  subdued  colors.  The  two  first  named  vehicles  are  com- 
posed of  straight  lines  and  regular  forms  but  the  two  last, 
though  differing  from  one  another  in  many  respects,  are 
alike  in  being  made  in  semicircles  and  curves  of  various 
forms. 

We  have  often  seen  dog-carts  and  buggies  which  dis- 
pleased the  eye,  simply  because  their  bodies  were  painted  in 
colors  too  subdued,  while  others  were  agreeable  to  the 
sight,  because  their  bright  coloring  was  in  harmony  with 
their  regular  forms. 

It  would  therefore  be  well  for  painters  of  vehicles  to  re- 
member that  straight  lines  demand  brilliant  coloring,  while 
curves,  etc.,  are  most  effective  in  subdued  or  delicate  colors 

ONE  COLOR  FOR  WOOD  AND  ANOTHER  FOR  IRON. 

When  more  colors  than  one  are  employed  in  painting  a 
vehicle,  it  is  usual  to  make  the  body  of  one  color  and  the 
wheels  of  another,  and  this  is  not  a  bad  method.  The  dis- 
tinction made  between  the  parts  mentioned  seems  a  natural 
one,  and  the  difference  in  their  colors  generally  gives  the 
vehicle  a  light  and  handsome  appearance. 

But  this  is  not  the  only  way  iu  which  the  painting  of  a 
vehicle  may  be  varied.  Atone  time  there  could  often  be 
seen  carriages  in  which  the  wooden  parts  were  all  of  the 
same  color,  as  for  instance  yellow,  while  the  iron  portions 
were  all  of  another  color — perhaps  black. 

Thus  painted  these  carriages  look  well,  for  although  the 


THE  COMPLETE    CARRIAGE   AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      157 

difference  between  the  wood  and  the  iron  is  not  so  appar- 
ent as  that  between  the  body  and  wheels  of  a  vehicle,  still 
it  is  a  point  which  should  be  always  remembered  by  the 
painter. 

Some  American  carriages  are  so  painted  as  to  make  the 
metallic  axles  of  the  same  color  as  the  wooden  spokes  of 
the  wheels. 

It  is  to  be  presumed  that  in  working  in  this  fashion  the 
painter's  object  is  to  make  two  different  materials  appear 
to  be  one  and  the  same.  But  such  dissimulation  is  in  bad 
taste.  Good  taste  is  always  true  and  straightforward, 
hiding  nothing  and  counterfeiting  nothing,  making  every 
material  appear  at  its  best,  but  never  attempting  to  bring 
one  substance  into  an  apparent  resemblance  to  something 
very  different. 

It  has  been  argued  that  painting  the  wooden  and  iron 
parts  of  the  same  color  gives  a  lighter  appearance  to  the 
vehicle.  But  unfortunately  it  does  this  and  more  ;  it 
makes  the  vehicle  seem  too  light.  Every  one  knows  that 
the  strain  on  an  axle  is  very  much  greater  than  that  which 
a  spoke  has  to  sustain,  and  yet  the  former  is  not  much 
larger  than  the  latter.  Consequently  the  spoke  appears 
too  large  or  the  axle  too  small.  But  when  the  axle  is 
painted  of  a  different  shade  from  the  spoke,  the  fact  that 
the  one  is  wood  and  the  other  iron,  and  therefore  equal  to 
its  task,  is  at  once  apparent. 

Now  it  is  a  fact  that  when  some  of  these  American 
carriages  are  seen  in  the  streets  they  seem  to  an  inexperi- 
enced observer  to  be  too  weak  for  actual  use.    A  carriage 


158     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  'WAGON  PAINTER. 

maker  does  not  make  this  mistake,  because  he  instinctively 
recognizes  the  difference  in  the  materials  employed. 

For  these  reasons,  we  think  that  under  all  circumstances 
the  metallic  parts  of  a  vehicle  should  be  painted  of  a 
different  color  from  that  employed  on  the  wood. 

CRITICISM  ON  THE  ABOVE  BY  A  CORRESPONDENT  OF  "  LE 
PEINTRE  EN  VOITURE" — ATT.  PARTS  OF  A  CARRIAGE 
SHOULD  BE  OF  SAME  COLOR. 

In  my  opinion  no  painter  should  seek  to  indicate  by 
colors  the  difference  in  the  materials  of  a  vehicle.  I  be- 
lieve that  an  appearance  of  strength  and  solidity  can  be 
best  attained  by  using  the  same  color  for  all  parts,  and 
thereby  avoiding  a  too  prominent  exhibition  of  joints,  bolts, 
etc. 

I  think  that  another  result  of  making  the  body  one  color 
and  the  carriage  part  another  is  the  loss  of  harmony,  and 
without  harmony  there  can  be  but  little  beauty.  I  do  not 
assert  that  there  are  no  such  things  as  agreeable  contrasts, 
but  there  are  also  contrasts  which  do  not  please  all  eyes  ; 
and  when  the  painter  deviates  from  harmony,  even  in  a 
small  degree,  he  is  liable  to  produce  effects  more  odd  than 
beautiful. 

I  contend  that  when  the  carriage  part  is  painted  of  a 
brighter  color  than  the  body  the  vehicle  may  appear  gay, 
but  certainly  not  elegant.  Take,  for  instance,  a  type  of 
carriage  to  be  seen  every  day.  Its  proportions  are  good  ;  the 
body  is  painted  brown  and  the  panels  are  encircled  by  a 
fine  line  of  gold.  The  carriage  part  is  light  brown,  set  off 
by  a  large  black  band  which  has  two  white  lines  in  its 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      159 

centre  ;  the  naves,  spokes  and  moldings  of  the  wood  are 
decorated  in  gold.  "What  ridiculous  taste  is  here  dis- 
played I  Now  behold  another  vehicle  ;  the  panels  and 
carriage  part  are  of  a  rich  shade  of  green,  set  off  by  large 
black  bands  bordered  by  a  narrow  straw-colored  line,  thus 
forming  a  partial  contrast.  The  ensemble  is  green  and 
black,  lightened  by  a  line  of  yellow  as  a  contrast.  Thus 
painted  the  general  effect  is  decidedly  pleasing,  but  if  the 
yellow  line  is  removed  and  one  of  bright  green  substituted, 
the  result  is  harmony,  and  consequently  elegance.  If,  on 
the  contrary,  a  red  bine  is  employed  instead  of  the  green, 
the  effect  is  ridiculous. 

Another  happy  contrast  can  be  produced  by  using  black 
for  the  ground  color,  and  setting  it  off  with  blue  glace,  or 
the  body  might  be  in  brown  glace  and  the  carriage  part 
in  brilliant  carmine  set  off  by  a  black  band.  There  is  a 
strong  contrast  between  the  brown  and  the  carmine,  and 
yet  the  two  colors  harmonize,  because  they  both  approach 
the  red. 

Let  us  now  consider  a  combination  which  shall  be 
thoroughly  harmonious,  for  instance  a  body  in  brown 
glace,  with  the  moldings  set  off  by  a  narrow  line  of  car- 
mine, the  carriage  part  to  be  painted  iike  the  body,  and 
with  a  black  band,  on  each  side  of  which  (but  not  very 
close)  is  a  narrow  line  of  carmine. 

Yet  to  return  to  your  remarks  in  the  last  number,  in 
spite  of  the  incontestably  elegant  appearance  of  this  car- 
riage, the  method  of  painting  adopted  would  tend  to  make 
it  appear  as  if  all  the  parts  were  composed  of  the  same 
material. 


160     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 

But  it  seems  to  me  that  to  paint  the  wooden  parts  in 
one  color  and  the  iron  in  another  would  be  a  very  poor 
method  of  obtaining  an  appearance  of  strength.  A  spec- 
tator not  acquainted  with  the  construction  of  carriages, 
so  far  from  being  impressed  by  the  apparent  solidity  of 
such  a  vehicle,  would  be  more  likely  to  conceive  just  the 
opposite  opinion.  I  should  certainly  consider  my  life 
safer  in  a  carriage  that  looked  firm  and  compact  than  one 
in  which  every  joint  was  made  prominent  by  its  color.  I 
do  not  care  to  have  my  carriage  appear  as  if  it  could 
be  taken  apart  off-hand  and  carried  around  like  a  fishing 
rod. 

In  conclusion  let  me  say  that  an  observer  so  ignorant  as 
to  suppose  that  a  vehicle  lacks  strength,  because  it  appears 
light,  should  be  advised  to  seek  instruction  on  the  subject, 
and  if  he  refuses  to  do  60  we  can  only  say  to  him  "  Au 
revoir,"  for  science  should  make  no  compromise  with  an 
ignoramus.  F.  J.  G. 

REJOINDER     BY     MR.     PETERSEN. 
THE  HARMONY  OF  ANALOGY. 

My  remarks  on  the  subject  of  the  painting  of  the 
■wooden  and  iron  parts  of  vehicles  have  drawn  from  F.  J. 
G.  a  criticism  which  I  will  now  proceed  to  answer. 

The  first  comment  I  have  to  make  is  that  his  taste  evi- 
dently differs  from  mine.  He  prefers  a  combination  of 
colors  which  I  would  term  the  harmony  of  analogy,  and 
which  consists  in  a  decided  color  for  the  bottom,  relieved 
by  slight  but  not  marked  variations  from  this  tint  and 
sometimes  by  the  occasional   use  of  a  neutral  color,  black 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON    PAINTER.      161 

or  white.  This  method  of  painting  is  now  much  in  vogue 
and  produces  an  elegant  effect  when  the  painter  who 
adopts  it  possesses  the  necessary  taste  and  skill,  and  it  is 
especially  well  suited  for  carriages  in  which  curves  and 
irregular  forcns  predominate,  because  the  grace  of  such 
hues  and  curves  render  a  richer  and  more  marked  style  of 
painting  useless  if  not  superfluous.  But  if  the  painter 
who  follows  this  method  lacks  discrimination  in  the  choice 
of  his  colors  or  ability  in  applying  them,  the  result  is  a  dis- 
agreeable faintness  and  indistinctness.  Moreover,  no 
skill  or  taste  in  the  application  can  make  this  style  of 
painting  successful  on  carriages  characterized  by  straight 
or  angular  forms  ;  for  in  such  cases  bright,  decided  colors 
are  indispensable. 

THE   HARMONY  OF  CONTRASTS. 

F.  J.  G.  appears  to  suppose  that  the  harmony  of  anal- 
ogy is  the  only  one  wliich  exists  in  colors.  He  is  mistaken. 
It  is  the  first,  simplest  and  most  natural  manner  of  vary- 
ing painting,  but  it  is  not  the  only  one.  The  harmony  of 
contrasts  is  employed  in  accorda  nee  with  the  laws  of  col- 
ors is  a  higher,  richer  and  more  artistic  method  of  orna- 
mentation. Of  course  the  successful  employment  of  the 
harmony  of  contrasts  demands  a  careful,  skillful  considera- 
tion of  tones  and  proportions,  and  when  these  points  are 
neglected  the  results  are  not  satisfactory.  Still  we  fail  to 
see  why  colors  that  are  too  brilliant  or  decided  are  worse 
than  a  combination  of  faint,  insignificant  tints. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

TRANSFER  ORNAMENTS. 

Transfers  or  "  Decalcomanie,"  as  it  is  sometimes  called, 
are  so  well  known  that  they  require  but  a  passing  word. 
Some  beautiful  designs  have  of  late  come  to  our  notice, 
and  it  is  indeed  surprising  how  the  art  has  grown  within 
the  past  few  years.  We  can  now  procure  a  beautiful  scroll 
and  landscape  for  the  sides  of  an  omnibus  or  wagon,  the 
whole  figure  (consisting  of  an  oval  centre  and  six  parts  of 
scroll,  which  can  be  put  either  in  a  straight  line,  or  com- 
bined to  fit  any  curve,  14  inches  wide  and  92  inches  in 
length),  costing  only  $7.50.  Scrolls  18  or  20  inches,  in  gold 
and  colors,  are  now  no  rarity,  and  when  well  applied  to  a 
job  give  elegance  for  a  trifling  expense.  We  speak  more 
particularly  of  the  large  transfers,  and  advise  their  use 
where  such  designs  cannot  be  readily  drawn,  because  they 
are  not  so  likely  to  be  known  as  transfers,  owing  to  their  size 
and  beautiful  workmanship.  They  are  indeed  very  differ- 
ent from  the  carriage  ornaments  such  as  every  little 
schoolboy  had  at  one  time  stuck  on  everything,  both  in 
school  and  at  home. 

A  transfer  ornament  may  be  so  changed  in  appearance 
that  it  would  never  be  known  as  such,  by  a  few  touches 
of  the  pencil,  the  slight  addition  occupying  but  little  time. 

HOME-MADE  TRANSFERS. 

It  frequently  occurs  that  a  carriage  owner  desires  a  very 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAG-ON  PAINTER.      163 

elaborate  coat-of-arms  on  his  carriage  panel,  and  yet  can-fc 
not  spare  the  carriage  long  enough  for  the  artist  to  do  the 
work.     Now  to  get  over  this  trouble: 

Procure  a  sheet  of  gummed  paper  (similar  to  a  postage 
stamp),  and  upon  the  gummed  surface  paint  the  design  in 
the  same  manner  and  with  the  same  colors  as  would  be 
used  on  the  carriage  panel.  Let  it  dry  ;  then  slightly  wet- 
ting or  dampening  another  piece  of  the  gummed  paper, 
lay  the  painted  design  face  down  upon  it  and  press  it  be- 
tween the  leaves  of  a  book  until  dry.  Next,  dampen  the 
back  of  the  paper  on  which  the  design  was  painted,  and 
when  soft  enough  remove  it,  in  the  same  manner  as  when 
using  an  ordinary  transfer.  This  leaves  the  painted  design 
face  downward  upon  the  gummed  paper  similar  to  any 
other  transfer. 

"When  the  home-made  transfers  are  thus  completed,  send 
for  the  carriage  and  transfer  the  design  to  the  panels  by 
varnishing  the  back  with  transfer  varnish,  or  a  little  rub- 
bing varnish.  Dampen  and  remove  the  paper  as  usual, 
and  you  will  find  the  design  as  nicely  depicted  on  the 
panel  as  if  it  were  a  purchased  decalcomanie,  and  the  time 
taken  to  do  such  work  would  be  nothing,  compared  to  the 
painting  done  on  the  carriage  itself. 

This  plan  of  operations  might  be  utilized  by  the  painter 
for  other  work.  He  might  take  home  some  little  job  of 
this  kind,  and  make  money  in  spare  moments. 


MONOGRAMS, 


We  present  in  the  following  pages  some  specimens  of 
monograms  of  various  styles  and  sizes. 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      167 


English. 


Florentine. 


168     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


JW 


KR 


tJT 


J.N 


KJ? 


THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER.      169 


J.S. 


KM. 


K.a. 


no 


170     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGON  PAINTER. 


Modern. 


Louis  XV. 


INDEX. 

.•> 

Pag*. 

Benches  and  Boxes  for  Colors 17 

Blacking  off  Bibs 63 

Brushes,  Badger  Hair 15 

Brushes,  "Bridling" 13,    1* 

Brushes,  Cleaning  up I6 

Brushes,  Flat  Bristle I6 

Brushes  for  Painting 13  to  16 

Brushes,  Oval 15.    16 

Brushts  used  in  a  Cheap  Job 149, 150 

Brushes  used  in  Varnishing 42 

Brush,  Camel*s  Hair 14,  15 

Carmine,  Cheap  Substitutes  for 49 

Chipping - 128 

Chipping  from  Last  Coat 132,  133 

Color,  Bismarck  Brown 23 

Color,  Bottle  Green 21 

Color,  Brick 23 

Color,  Bronze  Green 23 

Color,  Brown 22 

Color,  Canary . .     21 

Color,  Carnation  Bed 23 

Color,  Chamoline .  23 

Color,  Chestnut 22 

Color,  Chocolate 23 

Color,  Citron 22 

Color,  Claret 22 

Color,  Clay  Drab 23 

Color,  Coffee , 22 

Color,  Cream 22 

Color,  Dark  Milor i  Green 23 

Color,  Dark  Bich  Brown 24 

Color,  Deep  Buff 21 

Color,  Dove 22 

Color,  Drab 22 

Color,  Fawn  22 

Color,Flesh 22 

Color,  French  Gray 21 


173  INDEX. 

Page. 

Color,  French  Red    23 

Color,  Gold 21 

Color,  Grass  Green 23 

Colors,  Grinding 25,  26 

Color,  Japan  Brown 24 

Color,  Jonquil  Yellow 23 

Color,  Le  Cuir  or  Leather 24 

Color,  Lemon  22 

Color,  Light  Buff 21 

Color,  Light  Gray .22 

Color,  Lilac 22 

Color,  London  Smoke  22 

Color,  Maroon  22 

Color,  Medium  Gray 21 

Colors,  Mixing 19  to  26 

Color,  Oak  21 

Color,  Olive 21 

Color,  Olive  Brown 23 

Color,  Peach  Blossom 23 

Color,  Pea  Green  22 

Color,  Pearl 81 

Color,  Plum 23 

Color,  Portland  Stone 23 

Color,  Primrose  Yellow  24 

Color,  Purple 22 

Color,  Ready  mixed 17,    18 

Color,  Rose 21 

Color,  Salmon 21 

Color,  Snuff 21 

Color,  Stone 22 

Color.Straw 22 

Color,  Tan  22 

Color,  Tea  Green 24 

Color,  Violet 22 

Color,  Willow  Green 22 

Color,  Willow  Leaf  Green  24 

Color,  Wine 22 

Color,  Yellow  Lake 23 

G\»lor  and  Form  in  Vehicles 155  to  159 

Colors  (Bright)  for  Straight  Line  Vehicles 156 

Colors  Elegantly  Combined  in  a  Vehicle,  An  Illustration  of 159 

Colors  Employed  on  Wagons 68,    69 

Colors  for  Buggies  and  Dog  Carts  156 

Colors  for  Cabriolets  and  Mail  Coachea 15* 


INDEX.  173 

Page. 

Colors  for  Lumber  Wagon  Boxes 143 

Colors  for  Striping 55 

Color  for  Wood  Should  Not  be  the  Same  as  for  Iron 156 

Colors  (Subdued)  for  Vehicles  made  in  Curved  Lines 156 

Color  Subordinate  to  Form 155 

Colors  Suitable  for  First  Coat,  on  a  Business  Wagon  Body. .  .34,  35,    36 

Colors,  to  Match,  in  Re- varnishing 153 

Colors  used  for  Business  Wagon  Gears 36 

Colors  used  for  tbe  Second  Coat  on  a  Business  Wagon  Body 36 

Colors  used  for  Striping  Lumber  Wagons 143 

Colors  used  in  Wagon  Painting 17,    18 

Colors  used  on  Delivery  Wagons 68,    69 

Colors  used  on  Ribbed  Body  Business  Wagons 68 

Drying,  Dead 132,  133 

Dusting  and  Cleaning  Work 137, 138, 139,  140, 141 

Dutch  Metal 67 

Edging  Gold  Letters 107 

Ellipse,  How  to  Make 101  to  103 

Ellipse,  Use  of,  in  Making  Round  Letters 97 

Figures,  Balancing  Properly 103 

Finish  for  End  of  Panel  Stripe 62,    63 

Foundation  in  Carriage  Painting 127,  128 

Furniture  of  Paint  Rooms 12,    13 

Furniture  of  Varnish  Rooms 12,    13 

Gear  Coat  for  a  Cheap  Job 149 

Gears  for  Business  Wagons,  To  Paint 35,  36,  37 

Gears,  To  Clean 140,  141 

Gilding  Machine 66 

Gilding  Size 64 

Glazing 24,    25 

Glazing  Name  Panels 37 

Glazing  with  Carmine , 49 

Gold  Bronze,  Applying,  to  Wagons 67 

Gold  Leaf,  Applying 64,65,   66 

Gold  Paint  67 

GoldSize 64 

Gold  Striping 64 

Good  Taste  in  Painting  a  Vehicle,  An  instance  of 159 

Ground  Coat  for  a  Business  Wagon 34,    35 

Ground  Color  for  a  Carriage 132 

Hand,  Position  of  in  Striping 53 

Colors  (Harrison's  Combination)  in  a  Vehicle,  An  Example  of 159 

Harmony  in  Painting  Vehicles  Lost  by  Making  the  Bodies  one  Color 
and  Carriage  Part  Another  158 


174  INDEX. 

Page. 

Harmony  of  Analogy,  The 161 

Earmony  of  Contrasts  in  Painting. 161 

Harness  Leather,  Use  of  in  Hammering  on  a  Painted  Surface 147 

Indicating  b}^  Colors  tbe  Difference  in  the  Materials  of  Vehicles..  158 

Ivory  Black,  How  to  Tbin 26 

Last  Coat  on  a  Carriage  131, 132 

Laying  out  Letters  96  to  103 

Lead  Color,  How  to  Make 21 

Lead  Color,  Method  of  Priming 28 

Lead  in  Revarnishing  Carriages 152 

Lettering,  Colors  used  for 108 

Lettering  for  Wagons 70  to  110  inclusive 

Lettering,  Pencils  for 107.108 

Lettering,  Tools  used  in 107,  108 

Letters,  Abbot,  Downing  Co .  's  Styles  of 79 

Letters,  Balancing  Properly 103 

Letters,  Boston  Roman 89  to    95 

Letters,  Full  Block 71,  72,  73 

Letters,  Full  Block  Octagon 72 

Letters,  Full  Block  Round 73 

Letters,  Gothic  Half  Block 98,  99,  100 

Letters,  Half  Block 71  to  76 

Letters,  Half  Block,  How  to  Design 96,  97 

Letters,  Half  Block  Octagon 73,  74 

Letters,  Haif  Elock  Round 73,  74 

Letters,  Italic 77 

Letters,  Modern  Old  Style 80 

Letters,  New  York  Roman  81  to  89 

Letters,  New  York  Roman  Italic 86  to  89 

Letters,  New  York  Roman  Italic,  Lower  Case 88,  89 

Letters,  Ornamental 78 

Letters,  Outline 76 

Letters,  Printers'  Black  or  German  Text 77 

Letters,  Roman  80  to  95 

Letters  (Shaded),  Various  Styles  of 108,  109,  1 1 0 

Letters,  Solid  Block 77 

Letters,  Square  Block 77 

Letters,  Tuscan  Full  Block 78 

Lightening  up  a  Job 63 

Lines  in  Striping  for  Carriages 56,  57,    .'  8 

Materials,  Care  of 45 

Monograms,  English  Style 167 

Monogram,  Florentine  Style 107 

Monogram,  Louis  XV.  Style 170 


'■ 


INDEX.  175 

Page. 

Monogram,  Modern  Style. 170 

Monogr-ams 165  to  170 

Nickel  Leaf...t..,. „ 67 

Oil,  the  Use  of 20 

Old  Paint,  the  Uses  of 148 

Paint  Brushes,  Round 13 

Paint,  Cracking  of 48 

Paint,  Crawling  cf  46,    47 

Paint,  Drying  Qualities  of,  How  to  Test 19,    20 

Paint  for  New  Wheels  (Carriage)  127 

Paint  for  Repair  Work,  How  to  Mix  146 

Paint  for  Second  Coat  on  New  Carriage  Wheels 128,  129 

Paint,  Peeling  off,  How  to  Prevent 133 

Painting  a  Body  for  a  Cheap  Job 149,150,151 

Painting  a  Business  Wagon  Body 34,    35 

Painting  a  Carriage  Body 134,  135 

Painting  a  Cheap  Job  148  to  151 

Painting  a  Spoke  in  Repair  Work 146 

Painting  a  White  Job 69 

Painting  an  Express  Wagon 148  to  151 

Painting  Canvas  Top  Sides 48 

Palettes,  Zinc » ...  53,    54 

Panel  Stripe  for  Spring  Bars 58,    60 

Painting  Lumber  Wagons h. 142,  143,  144 

Painting  Wooden  Parts  the  Same  as  Iron,  in  American  Carriages. .  157 

Paints  used  for  Lumber  Wagons 142,  143 

Pencils,  Care  of 54,    55 

Pencils  for  Ornamental  Striping 55 

Pencils,  Ox  Hair 53 

Pencils,  Striping 52,    53 

Pigments  for  Colors,  Combination  of 21  to    24 

Pounce  Bag,  A 62 

Priming 28,    29 

Priming  for  a  Cheap  Job 148,  149 

Priming  Lumber- Wagon  Boxes  143 

Pumice-Stone  Dust,  How  to  Remove  from  Work 139 

Pumice-Stone  in  Rubbing  out 32 

Putty ,.26,    27 

Putty,  Block 27 

Putty,  Block  Bedding 27 

Putty  (Black)  for  Irons 27 

Putty  for  Carriage  Gears  and  Wheels 130, 131 

Putty  for  Gears,  How  to  Make 34 

Putty  Knife  Method  in  Painting  Business  Wagons,  The 38 


176  INDEX. 

Paoe. 

Puttj-,  Quick 26 

Putty,White 26 

Puttying  for  a  Cheap  Job  149 

Puttying  Joints 139,  140 

Eep  lir  Work,  Touching  up 145 

Re  varnishing  a  Carriage 152,  153,  154 

Rough  Stuff  for  Business  Wagons 39,    40 

Rough  Stuff,  Mixing 30,    31 

Rough  Stuff,  Rubbing  Out 32,    33 

Rough  Stuff,  Wnite 69 

Rough  Stuffing  Panels 30,    31 

Rubbing  a  Carriage  135,  136 

Rubbing  Down  a  Carriage  for  Revarnishing  152 

Rubbing  Out  Rough  Stuff 32,    33 

Rubbing  Process,  The 37 

Rubbing  Stone,  English 33 

Rubbing  Varnish 41,42,    43 

Rubbing  Varnish,  How  to  Apply 41,    42 

Sand  Papering  a  Carriage 131 

Sash  Tool,  The .' 14 

Schumachersche  Fabrik: 33 

Scrolls  (Fkft)  Designs  for 118, 119,  120 

Scrolling,  Free  Hand, Ill 

Scrolling  (Gold),  Shading  in 116 

Scrolling,  Harmony  in 116.  Ir7 

Scrolling  in  Gold 115.  116 

Scrolling,  Leafing  in 11 2  to  120 

Scrolling,  The  First  Lesson  in 111.  112 

Scrolling,  The  Line  of  Beauty Ill,  112 

Scrolling,  Wagon 11 1  to  120 

ScroUs,  Flat  117  to  120 

Shading 104toll0 

Shading  Black  Letters 106 

Shading  Gold  Letters      105,  106 

Shading  Octagon  Half  Block  Letters  with  a  Double  Shade  Blocked.  105 
Shadiug  Octagou  Half  Block  Letters  with  a  Single  Shade  Blocked . .  104 

Shading,  Position  of  Lines  in 1 07 

Shading  Red  Letters 106 

Shop  (The),  And  How  it  Should  be  Constructed 11,    12 

Silver  Bronze 67 

Silver  Leaf 67 

Stencil,  How  to  Make 121,  122 

Stenciling 121.122,123 

Stenciling,  Brushes  for 123 


INDEX.  177 

Page. 

Stenciling,  Mixing  Colors  for 123 

Stencils,  Designs  for 121,122 

Stripe  for  Back  Ends  of  Shafts  and  Part  of  the  Cross-Bar 61 

Stripe  for  Top  of  a  Spring 58,    60 

Stripes  for  Wagon  Gears 58  to  62 

Striping  Pencils 51,  52,    53 

Striping,  Straightening  out 66 

Striping  Tools 51  to  55 

Striping  used  on  Business  Wagon  Gears 56 

Striping  Wagons 50  to  67 

Touching  up  Repair  Work 345, 146, 147 

Transfer  Ornaments 162,  163 

Varnish,  Blistering  of 47 

Varnish  Brushes,  How  to  Clean 44 

Varnish  Brushes,  How  to  Keep  in  Good  Condition 44 

Varnish,  Cracking  of 48 

Varnish,  Crawling  of 46,  47 

Varnish,  How  to  Mix  for  Carriages 133 

Varnish  Room,  to  Warm 41 

Varnish,  Specky 46 

Varnish,  Sweating  of 43,    44 

Varnish,  The  Finishing  Coat  of,  for  Carriages 134,  135 

Varnish,  To  Lay  On 42,    43 

Varnishing  40  to    48 

Varnishing  a  Carriage 133  to  136 

Varnishing  a  Furniture  Van 40,    41 

Varnishing  a  Lumber  Wagon 144 

Varnishing  a  Sleigh 41,  42,    43 

Varnishing  a  Wagon 41,42,    43 

Varnishing,  Brushes  for 133 

Varnishing,  Failures  in 45,    46 

Ventilator  for  Varnish  Rooms  11,    12 

Vermilion,  Grinding 25 

Vermilion,  Light  English 25 

Vehicles,  Angular  Forms  in 155,  156 

Vehicles,  Irregular  Forms  in  155, 156 

Vehicles  which  Displease  the  Eye 156 

Wagon,  Business  To  Paint 28  to    40 

Wagons  (Lumber),  To  Paint 142, 143,  144 

Wagon  Painting,  Colors  Required  in 17,    18 

Wagon  Scrolling , Ill  to  120 

Wood  Filler  for  Priming,  Wheeler's 39 

Wood  Filling  on  Business  Wagons 39,   40 


178     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  WAGrON  PAINTER. 


"OUT  OF  A    TOTAL  OF  SIXTY-TWO  CARRIAGES  EXHIBITED 

AT     THE     BORDEAUX    EXPOSITION    IN    BORDEAUX, 

FRANCE,   THIRTY-TWO  WERE  FINISHED    WITH 

"YALENTINES  YARNISHES." 


"SIXTY    OF    THE    ONE   HUNDRED    AND     THIRTEEN     CAR- 
RIAGES ON  EXHIBIT  A  T    THE  AMSTERDAM 
EXPOSITION,  ARE  FINISHED  WITH 

"YALENTINE'S  YARNISHES." 


F.  W.   DEVOE  &  CO., 

Cor.  Fulton  and  William  Sts.,  New  York, 


MANUFACTURERS  OF 


DRY  COLORS. 

Colors  in  0i/}  in  Japan,  and  in  Distemper. 


VARNISHES  AND  JAPANS. 


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We  wish  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fact  that  we  guarantee 
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MANUFACTURERS  OF 

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Painters'  Supplies,  Artists'  Materials,  Eta 


180     THE  COMPLETE  CARRIAGE  AND  "WAGON  PAINTER. 


SEND  FOR  OUR  NINETY-SIX  PAGE  ILLU& 
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MILES    BROTHERS   &   CO., 

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THE 


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